


From Start to Finish

by MercyMae



Series: Days Ahead [4]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Angst, Awesome Pepper Potts, Bullying, Father-Son Relationship, Flash is a total asshole, Fluff, Gen, Gen Z humour, High School Student Peter Parker, Michelle Jones Is a Good Bro, NOT STARKER - Freeform, Ned Leeds is a Good Bro, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker Whump, Peter Parker has glasses, Peter is a little photographer, Precious Peter Parker, Protective May Parker (Spider-Man), Protective Tony Stark, Teacher Tony Stark, Teen Romance, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark is Good With Kids, but barely, childhood best friends, coach Wilson is mean, then tony upgrades to
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-09
Updated: 2019-10-05
Packaged: 2019-11-14 01:13:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 38,299
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18042644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MercyMae/pseuds/MercyMae
Summary: In a world where no super powers exist, A boy must find strength in those he'd least expect. So, fresh out of Middle school, Peter Parker joins the scary world of High School. With unfamiliar territory, bullies, and new crushes developing, he finds himself treading the world on thin ice alone. But who said he was actually alone?Along the way, he finds comfort in two childhood best friends, and a new teacher who has the understanding of how the world works. And perhaps a father-figure.





	1. Welcome to Midtown

**Author's Note:**

> Peter meets a new teacher in his first year of highschool.  
> (NOT STARKER. REPEAT. NOT STARKER.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> inspired by: hopeless_hope and myglassesaredirty on A03

"Ooh" May gushed as she hugged her new highschooler tightly. "My baby is a freshman! How exciting!"

"Aunt May," Peter complained, but he didn't tug away from her hug.

"Sorry," she said, quickly pulling away. Peter saw May wipe a tear off her cheek and smile brightly.

"I'm just so proud of you."

"I know Aunt May." Peter smiled back.

"Uncle Ben would be proud of you," May whispered.

Something tugged at his heartstrings as he remembered that this would be the first year without his uncle. It hurt...

Peter gave a forced smile. "I know." But it didn't feel right not to have his Uncle with him.

Though, the Parker family had to move on. For the sake of his school and work.

To save him from emotional breakdown, a door bell rang and Peter perked up from his depressive state.

"I'll get it!" Peter said, walking to get the door while May got ready to go to work.

Peter unlocked the door and revealed two teenagers, both of them wearing a grim facial expressions.

Need Leeds and Michelle Jones were his two best friends that he's known since kindergarten, and every since then they've always hanged out together.

"You guys already dreading the first day of highschool?" Peter joked, but even he couldn't deny that today was going to be nerve-wracking.

"We're no less nervous than you," MJ pointed out. The girl was wearing black jeans, with gray plaid shirt, along with brown combat boots. Her backpack was her brother's from last year.

Peter laughed nervously, but he didn't deny it.

"I just can't wait til school is over," Ned sighed. The boy was sporting a collared shirt and loose jeans. His backpack adorned with bunches of star ships that were no doubt from Starwars.

"We haven't even walked to school yet and you're already excited to go home." Peter laughed.

"Hey, a dude can dream!" Ned exclaimed. "I'm just hoping Flash won't bother us."

"I bet you five bucks that he will," MJ challenged.

Peter rolled his eyes. "I'm ready by the way. You wanna go early and get something from Delmar's?" He asked.

The teenagers lightened up and nodded.

"Okay, let me get my backpack and say goodbye to May and we'll leave," Peter exclaimed, leaving the front door open as he grabbed his red, new backpack. "May! I'm leaving! I'll see you after school!"

May popped her head out of the kitchen and smiled lopsided. "Have a good day! You have the lunch money?"

"Yep! Bye!" He called out, grabbing his apartment keys and shutting the door quickly, hearing a vague fare well from his Aunt.

His friends were waiting outside when Peter joined them.

"You ready?"

* * *

After getting on a subway together and getting some sandwiches from Delmar's, the teenagers were on their way to school.

When they arrived, they were hit with the school's headboard of: Welcome to Midtown! Students Welcome!

Bunches of students crowded the school's entrance. Some had dyed hair, some had some odd clothing that didn't go against the dress code. They were all dispersed in their own little group.

The school was still too early for it to open, so everyone was just anticipating to go in school already and get their schedule from the gym.

When walking, some foot tripped Peter, making him stumble a bit.

"Watch it Penis" An aggressive voice yelled at him. Peter turned around to see Flash Thompson looking at him, with a vicious smirk.

"Well if it isn't Penis Parker. What rock did you crawl from? The dumpster?"

There was no doubt that Flash had more expensive clothes than Peter. All of the clothes that he gotten was from a thrift shop.

"Shut up, Flash," Ned defended.

Flash scoffed. "Like anyone would actually listen to pathetic people like you guys."

"In retrospect," MJ started. "we're not the only ones that are pathetic, but I guess you can live in your delusional world if you want to." She shrugged and dragged the two along with her, leaving Flash's mouth gaped open and in the midst of the crowds.

"The fact that you can make up rude remarks instantly is really dope," Peter laughed quietly. Ned nodded in agreement.

"Thanks, losers," MJ grinned.

Suddenly, a loud static came from the speakers. And in a instant, they could hear their principle's cheery voice.

"Good morning Midtown Techs! I hope you are all excited for this year of school!"

The crowd was silent. No one seemed to be enjoying the fact that school started. A couple of awkward silence, Principle Morita cleared his throat. "Well, like every year, we are going to meet at the gym to receive class schedules and meet your teachers. So I welcome you all. Please no shoving, pushing or obnoxious comments. We'll see you soon!"

The comm ended and everyone rushed into the school doors.

Unfortunately, Principle Morita's instructions did not go well. Students were shoving, pushing and yelling at each other. Thankfully though, they entered the gym unharmed. When they arrived, there was a podium in front of the bleachers with a microphone. Tables and chairs with teachers sitting on them were looking at sheets of papers that Peter assumed it was for the students schedule.

So many students were still shoving and trying to get to the bleachers in a hurry, he accidentally bumped into somebody, almost stumbling backwards and losing his posture. Looking up, he saw a man with a groomed goatee, colored aviator glasses on and a crisp suit that definitely costed more than his whole wardrobe. The tailored-suit man gazed at him with confusion and Peter looked at him with pure fear.

"Oh my gosh! I am so sorry, sir! I didn't mean to bump into you-!" Peter started babbling. He didn't even realize that Ned and MJ ran up to him when they spotted him with an older gentleman.

The man raised his hand and Peter clamped his mouth shut.

"Kid, its fine. I guess everyone is rushing to get this over with, huh?" He asked, his voice was lacing with a joking manner. Peter nodded feebly and gave a shy grin. The gentleman grinned back, but looked a bit forced. "Alright, why don't you kids go to the bleachers, I'm sure it'll be over soon." The man walked off and Peter watched him leave and sit at a table where all the other teachers were sitting.

Ned shook his shoulder. "Who was that?" He asked, peering over at Peter's direction.

"He might be a teacher," Peter guessed, looking away and looking at the bleachers that were already half full.

"Did you get in trouble?" MJ bit her lip. Peter shook his head and grinned tiredly. "Actually, he was pretty understanding, but I think we need to-ah nevermind..." Peter mumbled. About the time they started talking, the bleachers were full. Which meant they probably had to sit on the floor.

"Theres space near Flash," Ned suggested quietly, gesturing his head to Flash who was on the top bleacher. The trio glanced at each other and gave a defeated sigh.

"We can never escape him," MJ sighed annoyingly.

The group trudged on and climbed too the second highest bleacher and sat down. They could hear Flash and his friends snickering around, probably to plan some diabolical for them.

They talked for a few minutes and then Principle Morita stood up from behind a table and went to the podium. The microphone made a hissing noise, getting the attention of the students little by little.

Eventually, the principle cleared his throat and gave a cheery smile.

"Good morning Midtown Techs! Me and the teachers welcome all of you to a brand new year!" Morita crowed. A few of the students clapped, but most of them stayed silent. "As we all know, we have new teachers, so please give them the deepest respects." He said.

"Now, on the far left corner are sign up sheets for clubs. If you have time, whether after school or during lunch or whenever you have time, please come to the gym and sign up. We have new clubs that are most certainly fun!"

There was a lousy "Woo," from the students and Morita licked his lips in dismay. Some of the teachers were hiding back their smiles as every student was about to fall asleep.

As the teacher explained something about the cafeteria, he felt a sting on the back of his neck. A boy from behind him started snickering and snorting hard. When he reached his neck, something was wet and Peter cringed.

_Spitball._

MJ leaned in and grabbed a tissue from her pocket. Thank God for MJ.

Peter smiled graciously and plucked it out, drying his neck from the disgusting spitball. Then, another one hit him again and Peter couldn't take it anymore as he turned around with an annoyed expression, obviously to tell them to stop.

Flash and his buddies were looking around innocently, hiding the straws behind their backs. Peter opened his mouth to whisper something to them, but Morita beat him to it. "Mister Parker? Are we already boring you already?" Morita raised a brow.

Peter froze and closed his mouth, face flushed and embarrassed. "N-no, sir. Sorry, sir," he apologized. Everyone was watching his every move, and eyes were staring at him.

Morita nodded in approval and continued on talking.

Peter slumped a bit, to avoid some people that were still staring and was tempted to put up his hood. The boy looked cautiously around to see anymore stares, and spotted one from the teacher's table.

It was the man that he bumped into. The gentleman looked at him with sympathy...almost as if he felt sorry for him. Peter looked away and averted his eyes towards the principle.

* * *

The first day was probably the most laid back school day there was. Although, it was kind of stressful to figure out their class schedules and whether they have their friends with them.

When Peter and his friends got their papers, they were somewhat bummed that they didn't get all the classes together.

"I have Algebra I for 1st period, World Geography for 2nd, Language Arts for 3rd, Spanish for 4th, then lunch, Photography I for 5th period and Physical Ed for the last period. Peter said, reading his paper.

"I have Algebra I,Language arts, Photography I, and Physical Ed with Peter," MJ said.

"No fair!" Ned whined. "I only have 3 classes with you," he huffed out.

"What are the classes you were put in with me?" Peter asked, leaning over to peek at Ned's papers.

"Spanish, World Geography and Physical Ed!" Ned pouted.

"You forgot Lunch." Peter smirked when Ned glared at him unhelpfully.

"D'you think Flash has some of your classes?" MJ asked. Peter shrugged and sighed, "I hope not. We already had to endure him from Middle school and Elementary."

The bell rang.

Hell was awakening for them.

* * *

Ned left to his own class and MJ and Peter walked to their class. They were pretty early from the rest of the group so they can pick out their own desks in the very back. When they entered, they were met with the man again.

Ah. So, he was a teacher.

"Hey, kiddos," The man greeted, not looking away from his white board. The gentleman's jacket was slung over the teacher's chair and aviator glasses forgotten. Peter could see more added feature. He was no older than 50 years old, and had deep brown eyes.

They quickly found their spot in the very back, where all the students bustled in, and sadly, Flash was in this period. In other unfortunate news, he sat right in front of him. Peter winced when a powerful cologne hit his nostrils. Damn Flash. They all sat in their comfortable desks and waited for the bell to ring to officially start the first period.

When the school bell rang, the class became silent and the teacher turned around with a sly smile.

"Welcome Class! I'm Mister Stark, but call me Tony, because it makes me feel old." The man grinned when the class laughed a bit. "Also, don't call me sir," he added.

"Now, I'm gonna mix everything up now, so be prepared," Mister Stark warned. He pointed at Peter.

"You there, boy, what's your name and stand up as well," he directed. Peter stood up awkwardly. "I'm Peter."

"Cool." Tony nodded and then pointed to a desk that was nearest to the teacher's desk. "I want you to sit here for the rest of the year."

Peter looked shocked, but non the less, he took his bag, a bit grateful that he didn't have to sniff Flash's strong cologne anymore. Peter sat in the chair, leaving a student standing up.

Mister Stark pointed to the girl that was standing up. "Whats your name, hon?"

"Cindy Moon," she replied.

Tony smiled. "I want you to sit where Peter sat before." The girl obliged and scurried to the seat, sitting down and folding her hands respectfully. The whole class was beyond confused, but they remained quiet.

"The boy that was in front of Peter, stand up, say your name," Tony said.

The bully stood up proudly. "I'm Flash Thompson."

"Okay, Flash, I want you to sit in two seats to your right," he said. Flash moved and sat down in his new seat.

"Stand up, and name, please," Tony said, pointing to another boy.

"Jason," he said. The teacher smiled and pointed to the chair he wanted the student to sit at.

From then on, he got everyone's names and assigned seat. MJ was able to sit right behind Peter, which was pretty nice. Mister Stark clapped his hands with a wide grin. "I can tell from your faces that you guys are all confused, yeah?"

Everyone nodded.

"Well, I want you guys to be out of your comfort zone and into the wild dangers that are lurking in this class." He pointed to floor and then himself. "That including me." The class chuckled.

"Now, onto rules!" He stated. "Rule number one! You guys can curse, only if its not to another classmate, and lets be real, everyone has their days and messes up. Science shows that cursing helps relieve your anger." The class nodded, a bit amazed that a teacher will allow cursing.

"Rule Number two! Every Thursday will result in a quiz. This week as well-" The class groaned.

"But, you will only get minimal homework. Sounds good?"

The class thought for a moment before several nodding heads approved.

"Number 3! You will get extra points if: You either spot a mistake on my part, or you showed your work on the math. Next! We all have anxiety, I think we can all agree on that, yeah?" Mister Stark asked the class, earning a handful of nods.

"Yeah, no fun. Now, I will allow music, but only by Sleeping At Last. It is proved that soft, mellow music helps with brain stimulation and calmness. Piano are acceptable too," he explained. "Though, I will also allow for cool time if you guys are actually having a stress melt down. You get 5 passes on that, so remember it."

"Finally, I don't want any spitballs flying around here, got that?" And he pointed his finger towards Flash. "That means you, Mister Thompson."

"But I didn't-"

"Just future references," Tony replied coolly, and winked at Peter.

Peter smiled at his new teacher. It was obvious that Mister Stark did witness of Flash being an asshole and decided to enforce the rule in his classroom. It was fair and...pretty wonderful of not having to worry about Flash annoying him.

"Also, many students struggle because they're too afraid to actually say it out loud. So, If you need help with algebra, come to me when your available and I'll help you out. Capiche?"

"Capiche," The class said all together.

"Good," Tony says.

 _Maybe this class wouldn't be so bad_ , Peter thought.

* * *

Unfortunately, Peter found out that he had 5/6 classes with Flash, and it was already horrible enough that he was bullied non the less by him. But, he was glad that he some classes with his friends.

When Peter entered his apartment, and was greeted by May right in front of the door with a wide smile on her face.

"Welcome home, sweetie! How was it?" She asked excitedly, kissing his forehead and walking into the kitchen.

"It was actually good," Peter admitted, smiling when May brought out some takeout food. Peter loved his Aunt May, but she couldn't cook anything for the life of her. So, they always had to get takeout.

"I heard there's a new teacher for algebra?" May asked, handing him the food. Peter took it and nodded. "Yeah, his name is Mister Stark and he's actually really cool. He allows us to play music and is pretty fair."

"Sounds like a teacher I wished I had," May giggled. The boy smiled and took a bite out of his food.

"Any other classes that were fun?" She asked.

Peter shrugged. "I have classes with MJ and we usually hang out together when Ned's not around. I like photography with her, so I guess that counts."

"Ohh." May wriggled her eye brows. "Someone is having a crush on the girl, huh?"

"May!" Peter blushed. "We're just friends, nothing really," he sighed.

"Uh-huh," May hummed incredulously. "Righttt."

"Shut up!" Peter faked his annoyance, but a grin crept onto his lips. "Now, I gotta do homework."

"Already?" May raised a brow. Peter nodded and stood up, his container of take out food, empty. "Yeah, but there's barely anything to do with the homework, so I'm just gonna finish it early," he answered.

"Sounds like a plan to me. I have the night shift again, so I need to leave in about 30 minutes. I left you school money for tomorrow and and I'll see you tomorrow after school," she said, kissing his brow.

Peter nodded. "Okay, goodnight, May!"

"Night, hon!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I have been brainstorming about this Idea for a very long time and i'm really excited to post it! I've only seen few of Teacher Tony Stark (Mostly because it has st*rker, but this time, its fudgind Dad!Tony! :D) but I'll be trying this idea out! Please let me know down in the comments if you enjoyed it :)
> 
> I got[Tumblr!](https://mercymaeyo.tumblr.com/)  
> Please come say hello! :)


	2. Photography

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In other words, Peter loves photography and Tony realizes that one of his students is freaking smart. Also...a bit protective?  
> Enjoy!~

A month has passed and Peter was actually enjoying highschool. His friends were there twenty-four-seven, and Flash hasn't bothered him since the first day of school. Peter had to thank his Algebra teacher for that.

Mister Stark was a eccentric teacher, always doing odd things and just asking random questions, but they were oddly hilarious and relatable.

When Peter and MJ entered Mister Stark's classroom one morning, their teacher was standing on the teacher's desk. It was pretty normal to see odd things from the classroom, but Peter still had the reason to ask. He didn't think that Mister Stark even seemed to notice them until he spoke with confusion lacing his voice.

"Mister Stark?"

Tony jolted and turned his head towards the two teenagers.

He smiled. "Hey, kiddos! Welcome to class, I was just revising our work today," he said.

"On the desk?" MJ raises her brow as she casually sat down, placing her large book on her desk.

"It makes me feel better, 'cause I'm short." Mister Stark shrugs, but Peter chuckled quietly. However, MJ, was unfazed by the answer and situation in general. Peter sat down in his assigned seat and turned around to face MJ, while Mister Stark returned his gaze towards the white board.

"Are there any crisis drawings you had yesterday?" Peter asked.

MJ smirked and nodded, drawing her crisis book out. "I think you will like this especially," she said, flitting the pages. Halting, Peter saw a boy with a mouth gaped open and somewhat in distress.

"Flash?" Peter guessed.

"Yep." MJ popped the 'p'

"I like how you added some sweat on his forehead," Peter laughed.

MJ suddenly shut her book and smiled back. "Can't get enough of big details," was all she said.

"Definitely can't," nodding in agreement.

Students started flooding into the classroom afterwards, and surprisingly, MJ and a girl named Cindy Moon were the only girls in the class, which meant a lot of jockies and other nerds boys filled the classroom. They concluded their conversation when Flash strode in proudly, giving a warning frown to them and then walking off to his own desk.

"That was odd," MJ murmured.

"Probably because he got caught of spitting spitballs at me." Peter shrugged.

The bell rang and the teacher hopped off the desk, earning gasps from some of the students.

"Relax kids, I'm not gonna break my back by doing this," Mister Stark assured.

"Now," He pointed to the whiteboard of a multiple choice equation. "This isn't exactly an Algebra problem, mostly calculus, but if you guys know the answer to this problem, you'll get extra points," Tony said. The class took a long glance at the question, but no one seemed to understand.

The question said:  **If f(x) = x 3 - 3x 2 + x and g is the inverse of f, then g (3) is equal to** :

**A.) 10**

**B.) 1/10**

**C.) 1**

**D.) None of the above**

Peter absentmindedly wrote down the problem and decided to figure it out during lunch.

"Onto the real math," Mister Stark said.

Everyone shuffled out their notebooks, and pencils for the next lesson.

* * *

"I actually really like Mister Stark," Peter said as he sat down at a lonely cafeteria table.

"Dude! He gave me extra points for saying a word that he didn't know existed," Ned exclaimed.

"What word was it?" MJ asked.

"The word, Trouvaille."

"Oh! It means a lucky find," Peter said, earning a nod from Ned.

"That's an odd word," MJ murmured, but didn't go further into it.

Peter shrugged. "Extra credit is extra credit."

Before any of his friends could open their mouth, someone flicked the back of his head. Peter turned around and saw Flash with a fuming facial expression.

"Hey Penis! Why did you snitch on me, huh?"

However, Peter seemed unfazed with the question. "I didn't do anything, Flash, perhaps you're not as stealthy as you thought you would be," he replied back, a bit sarcastically.

Peter grunted when Flash forcefully tugged the back of his hood.

"You better watch it, Penis," Flash seethed. "no one likes a snitch." The bully let go and walked off.

"It was from the first day of school! Its been like a month since then, and he's still hasn't gotten over it?" MJ exasperated. Although, today was the first time Flash has ever spoken to him since first day of school.

It was nice while it lasted...

"What an Asshat," Ned grumbled.

"I'm fine," Peter assured, rubbing the back of his neck to soothe his soreness.

"You're always fine," Ned said quietly, his brow furrowing.

Peter shrugged. "I have to be," was all he said.

* * *

"Look at this picture I took of a squirrel trying to stuff a wrapper in his mouth!" Peter exclaimed to MJ, holding the camera to her view.

Lunch ended and the next period he was in, was Photography and Peter really,  _really_ loved Photography. The class had new cameras to take pictures from around the school and he was oddly good at taking aesthetic pictures, earning A's from the class.

MJ enjoyed it too and preferred to take pictures that consisted of people in crisis and saving them to draw later. Though, she was really good at taking reflective ones as well. They were both paired up for a project to take pictures that's relevant to a quote. But, they had fun along the way.

The girl looked at the picture and then craned her neck to her friend, who had a goofy smile.

"Did you check what the wrapper said?" She raised her brow playfully.

Peter's expression changed and looked closely at the shot. She snorted when Peter cringed and looked away from the camera.

"Oh my gosh, he's trying to stuff a condom wrapper in his mouth," Peter whispered, mortified. MJ laughed out loud and had place her hand over her mouth to contain her laughs.

When MJ recovered from her laughs, she leaned into Peter. "Maybe he needs them too," she whispered just as quietly.

"Please stop," Peter begged, but started laughing.

"Never."

The two took more pictures and eventually split to find more funny/beautiful pictures. Peter went to the school's alleyway, where he lied down in the middle and positioned his camera upwards to the sky and dirty walls between it. Almost as if the walls were closing in on him. When he took the picture, he grinned.

"Didn't think anyone actually comes to the school's alleyway," A voice caught him off guard. It was almost sounded familiar.

Sitting up and whipping his head towards the voice, he saw his Algebra teacher leaning against the wall with his orange aviator glasses on. Peter panicked and stood up. "Mister Stark! I-I was just here to take a picture for photography class-"

"Kid, Its okay," Tony reassured, smiling. "I just heard a snap and decided to investigate.

Peter blew out a breath, relieved.

"Sorry for scaring ya, kiddo," he laughed.

"Its okay," Peter smiled, but soon turned into a frown. "Aren't you supposed to be in class?" He asked.

Mister Stark shook his head. "Nah, don't have classes during 5th period, so I just wander around the school until the period is over."

"What about grading homework or stuff like that?"

Tony raised a brow. "Are you seriously telling me how to do my job?"

Peter panicked again and shook his head vigorously. "N-no, sir! I was just-"

He was interrupted with a boom of laughter. Peter looked at the man with wide eyes and confusion seeping inside him. He was laughing?

Mister Stark wiped away a tear from his eyes and shook his head. "Honestly, kid, I was joking. Learn to lighten up," he said, grinning.

Peter laughed nervously, but was on the verge of crying. His teacher seemed to have noticed, because he quickly excused the subject. "So what kind of project are you doing?" He asked.

Peter snapped out his thoughts and gave a shy quirk of his lip. "My project is to take pictures that's relevant to quotes or poems we were assigned and explain why," he answered. The man smiled and nodded. "That sounds pretty cool, do you mind if I take a peek of the picture?"

The boy nodded enthusiastically and walked up to him. Showing him the picture, Mister Stark took his glasses off and squinted. When he was done looking at it, he straightened and patted the boy's shoulder.

"You're really good at this," he complimented, getting Peter to blush a bit.

"O-oh, thank you sir, that's really kind of you."

"Oh, but its true, dear student of mine. Everyone is good at something," Mister Stark mused.

Peter nodded. "Definitely."

The school bell rang, and Peter perked up. "Oh! I have to get going! It was nice talking to you, Mister Stark!" He called out as he ran out the alleyway. Peter ran off so fast, he didn't even know if Mister Stark was about to say something.

Peter caught up with MJ, who was searching for him as she strapped on her backpack on.

She blew a breath of relief. "Finally! I thought you were going to be late," MJ said as Peter quickly slung on his own backpack, walking while doing so.

"Sorry, Mister Stark was talking to me," Peter said.

"Stark?" She raised her brow.

Peter nodded. "Apparently, he doesn't have 5th period with anyone, so he just wanders around the school."

"That's boring," MJ huffed.

"Books are boring too," Peter teased.

"You take that back." MJ pointed an accusing finger at him, earning a chuckle from him.

Before she could sass back, Ned caught up with them, excited as hell.

"Guys, guys! My mom invited you guys over to hang out after school if you want too. She says that we're having a small party for my little sister's birthday," he said.

"Will there be a pinata?" Peter asked, grinning. Ned laughed and shrugged. "Who the heck knows, but maybe. I also got a new lego set after we're done with the party." he replied.

"Yeah, I'll come, nothing to do on Friday's anyways," MJ said, walking ahead of them and entering the girls locker room. Ned and Peter shared a glance.

"Will you be able to come?" Ned asked.

"Definitely! I'll tell my aunt that I'll go over your house for a bit." Peter said, fishing out his phone.

_Peter: Hey, can I hang out with Ned after school? Says his little sister is having a small party._

_May: Of course! Use the extra money to call a taxi when you're done :)_

_Peter: Thanks, May!_

The boy stuffed his phone in his pocket and gave his best friend a thumbs up. 'We're good!"

"Awesome!"

The school bell rang and the boys froze in shock. Oh no.

"We're going to be late!" Ned exclaimed. Peter didn't even bother to answer, instead they rushed into the boys locker room, praying to God that their Gym teacher will give them mercy.

* * *

"What a freaking son of a-"

"MJ! We're in the nurse's room, be quiet!" Peter hissed, holding his bloody nose.

Backtracking a few minutes, when Peter and Ned arrived, their teacher was unfortunately not merciful. Instead, they had to run 5 more laps. By the time they were finished the laps, they were panting, and sweating.

The Gym Teacher immediately separated the class in two groups.

Then he yelled, "Dodge ball!" And before they knew it, everyone was throwing balls at each other, and one by one, students were called out and sitting at the bench. Peter was pretty good at dodging balls, but he could never escape Flash's aim.

So when Flash had the opportunity to strike Peter, he did...and it sent him to the nurse's office with a blood covering his hands and face. Gotta thank bloody noses for that.

"Dude, do you even realize that Flash made you bleed?" Ned asked worriedly.

"I'm fine." Peter huffed, but winced when the nurse gently pried his hand off his nose and dabbed it with a wet wash cloth. She tried cleaning as much as she could without letting it hurt, and then gave him a tissue box just in case if it bleeds again.

"At least we're excused from Gym." Peter said lightly.

"Flash didn't even get in trouble," MJ mumbled, frowning.

"Guys," Peter sighed. "I'm totally fine. Besides, its not the end of the world."

"It was for your nose," Ned said quietly.

"My nose happens to be very sturdy and strong," Peter huffed out proudly. Ned and MJ rolled their eyes, but gave Peter a small smile in return.

When they were about to exit, Peter stopped completely, as if he forgotten something.

"Oh, I'll be right back, I forgot something," Peter said, quickly turning around.

"We'll meet you outside the school." Ned said as he waved and went around the corner with MJ.

* * *

When Peter entered into the math class, he saw Mister Stark packing up for the day.

Knocking quietly, Mister Stark jerked his head up.

"Hi, Mister Stark!" Peter greeted cheerfully, stumbling in with a sheepish grin. Mister Stark returned the favor, stopping into his tracks. "Hi, buddy, you need something?" He asked.

"Oh, I just wanted to tell you the answer for the calculus question?"

Mister Stark seemed surprise, but kept his chill demeanor. "Well, fire away."

"Its B," Peter said confidently. Then, he took out his math notebook and showed his work to give him proof that he actually answered it truthfully. The teacher looked intently at Peter's notebook and Peter could see Mister Stark's eyes scanning it.

A minute later, Mister Stark gave him back his notebook and nodded in approvement. "I must say, Mister Parker, that you answered it correctly," he said, giving the boy a warm smile.

"Thank you, sir!" Peter exclaimed.

"Looks like you'll be getting extra credit," Tony said as he used a small paper to remind himself to add points under Peter Parker's name.

Peter looked ecstatic.

When Mister Stark finished jotting the note down, he gazed at Peter's face and he frowned a bit. "Did you get into a fight? You have blood smeared on your cheek."

Peter jolted and shook his head quickly. "Just an accident in gym, no biggie," he assured, forcing a smile at his teacher. Mister Stark didn't seem quite convinced, but he nodded and went back to packing up.

"Have a good weekend, Mister Stark!" Peter said hurriedly and left. Tony chuckled, "You too, kid!"

* * *

When Tony was done with packing up, he immediately went straight to the gym, where Coach Wilson was sitting down and cleaning some sort of mess on the floor.

Coach Wilson looked up and nodded curtly. "Stark."

"Wilson," Tony greeted back.

"What brings you here in the great gym room?" He asked sarcastically. Tony rolled his eyes, but he was here for a reason. "A student came in after school and he had blood smeared on his cheek, I was just wondering how he got it, considering he was in his gym clothes."

"Well, I might have the answer for you. Just take a look at my floor," Wilson bit out, pointing to the dried up blood that he was desperately trying to get off.

"Any reason he got it?" Tony asked.

"Eh, another kid accidentally hit him."

"I see," Tony said, putting the puzzles in place. "Well, that's it, have fun cleaning that."

Wilson scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Oh trust me, Stark, I will."

Tony exited the school and got into his expensive car. He sighed and wondered.

Peter Parker somehow gotten wrapped around his thumb for some reason. He didn't know why, he just felt the need to make sure the kid was alright. Maybe this teacher thing made him all paternal or something. It was weird. But for some reason, he really liked it. Sure, he was a freaking billionaire and didn't really need to get a job, but he was bored and teenagers are interesting...so why not give it a try?

So far, he really enjoyed being around kids.

But Peter Parker was special.

The kid was smart, and kind as well. When he first met the kid, it felt he was drawn to him. Then Peter surprised him more when he answered the calculus question  _and_ showed him the work to get that answer.

And the protectiveness that surged through his body when he saw the kid having blood on him made him sick. He noticed that Flash kid was bullying him on the first day of school and decided to separate them to give the kid some relief, but obviously, Peter had more classes with him.

Tony turned on the ignition and started driving out when he saw Peter and his friends walking with a grins, and smirks being shared to each other.

The kid looked happy, and he had some good friends. He always enjoyed seeing smiles from his students, almost as if he was doing something right for once.

"Oh, Peter Parker," Tony sighed. "You sure are one smart kid."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please tell me if there are any typos or mistakes!  
> Have a good Saturday :)
> 
> Come say hello on [Tumblr](https://mercymaeyo.tumblr.com/)  
> 


	3. Quiet Ways of Caring

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which, School systems suck and Mister Stark is caring.
> 
> (I have some important A/N at the end.)

Peter Parker has once again, impressed Tony Stark immensely.

It was just one of those days when he decided to go to the first Decathlon tournament, but when he sat down and watched as the students filled in their respective seats, he saw the last person to sit at the end of the table.

Peter Parker was on the team. And apparently, his friends too.

He watched in fascination as Peter answered most of the questions thrown at the team, followed by MJ's and Ned's answers too. When they finished, team Decathlon was announced winner. Everyone cheered and clapped their hands as the Decathlon team did a group hug.

There were smiles and laughs from the students and proud parents taking pictures.

Tony watched student by student giving hugs to their family members and them saying to their kids, "I'm proud of you," or "I knew you could do it!" with their heartwarming voices.

He spotted Peter smiling with his friends, along with a group picture in between. Tony wondered who raised this intelligent child, because if anything, they should be immensely proud. If he was that kid's father...God, he would be more than proud. He also pondered what kind of scores the kid will get on his Midterms, considering its coming up fairly soon.

Tony Stark stayed for a few minutes to see if he could catch a glance at Peter's family or at least his parents, but he just saw Peter slinging his backpack up and bidding a farewell to his friends.

Then, Peter walked off as if nothing happened.

Without even realizing, Tony's feet followed Peter outside.

When Tony was in hearing reach, he cleared his throat and called out with a, "Hey kid!"

The kid stopped in his tracks, freezing up.

Peter relaxed when he saw it was just Mister Stark.

"Oh, hey, Mister Stark," Peter greeted with a warm smile. Tony grinned back and used his finger to point behind him. "Good job on your Decathlon win." He said, earning a large smile from the boy.

"Thank you, Mister Stark! I'm glad you were able to come to the Decathlon tournament," he mused.

"Is your parents here? I'd love to meet the people who raised such a smart boy," Tony asked. And he was being serious. Every time there was a parent-teacher meeting, Peter would never be there and over time, he was getting more curious.

He saw the kid's eyes gaze down, almost sad.

"They couldn't come, sorry." He said.

Tony's shoulder sagged a bit, but it didn't seem like Peter noticed it. "That's fine, kid, sorry for interrupting you, I'll see you on Monday, yeah?" He asked. Peter perked up and nodding, beaming. "Of course! Wouldn't miss my favorite class!" He exclaimed.

"I thought Photography was your favorite?" Tony chuckled.

Peter shrugged nonchalantly. "Favorite thing to do in Photography is taking pictures, but I enjoy doing math and the teacher himself," Peter grinned. Tony felt his heart warmed after that nice compliment. Every student who either said that he was his favorite teacher or other nice stuff, made his heart flutter.

"Thanks, kid," Tony said softly.

Peter nodded back. "No problem, Mister Stark! I'll see you on Monday!" He said, turning around and leaving the teacher to stand by himself.

"Can't wait," Tony sighed, walking the opposite way towards his car.

Something about this kid made Tony just want to give him praises like a dad would do to his own son.

And it was weird. very weird.

* * *

 _"Oh, Honey! I'm so proud of you!"_ May said through the phone. Peter laughed softly.  _"Thanks, May."_ he said, but he was a bit sad that she couldn't come due to her work needing her.

Maybe next time...

_"I'll bring over a cake to celebrate when I'm done with work! I love you, sweetie!"_

_"Love you too, Aunt May, I'll see you soon,"_ Peter said. Their call ended and he sighed tiredly. Decathlon was a really fun club, and he loved doing tournaments, but he couldn't help but feel a twang of sadness when none of his family members could come.

In fact...Aunt May was the only family member he had.

And he had to be reminded that his parents (along with his uncle) was gone. Peter knew that Mister Stark was just curious and wanted to meet his parents, but it just sparked something in Peter that made him feel down.

"I miss you guys," Peter whispered, looking up at the night sky, stars twinkling so brightly. Peter smiled. "There's Orion, Uncle Ben, I hope you can see it more closely," he sighed.

He missed them  _so_  much...

* * *

When Peter entered his bedroom, he decided to start on homework.

He got a little bit of homework on Algebra, which was pretty easy, so he started that first. Unfortunately, a few questions later, he was stumped on this one problem. Pulling out his worn down laptop, he emailed Mister Stark.

**Subject: Math Problem  
Hello, Mister Stark. I am regarding to a problem in the Algebra we are doing for homework. Question #11 is giving me a hard time. Do you think you help me out?**

**Best Regards, Peter P.**

Peter stretched and looked at the time on the clock. He paled when it was half past 1am. He knew that his Aunt would be home by 4am, so he should probably sleep soon. He left his bedroom to get some tea. When the kettle was boiling, he checked his emails again and saw that Mister Stark has emailed him back.

 **Re: Math Problem  
** **Its almost 1am, kiddo. Shouldn't you be asleep? Or maybe because of the weekend, but I expected for students to stay up watching horror movies instead of homework. Anyways, I'll help you out, send me a picture.**

**-Tony Stark**

Peter laughed nervously to himself and took a picture of the problem. Going back to his tea, he poured the boiling water in a mug, waiting for the tea bag to steep. Once he was done, he brought his mug into the bedroom.

He checked his email again.

**Re: Math Problem  
You forgot to inverse your numbers.**

**-Tony Stark**

Peter choked on his tea and took a tentative look at his math. He groaned and erased the whole thing before writing it down and correcting his mistake. Sighing, he took another sip of his tea and emailed his teacher back.

 **Re: Math Problem  
** **Thank you for pointing it out and helping out. I fixed it.**

**Best Regards, Peter P.**

Peter yawned and rubbed his tired eyes. Maybe he should sleep now.

Before closing his school books and putting his mug into the sink, he checked his email to a new email Mister Stark had sent him.

**Subject: Sleep (Also Midterms announcement)  
First of all, you shouldn't be wasting your time on doing homework on the weekends. Hence why I hate giving homework out on the weekends, but the principle didn't allow it, so I tried giving as much minimal work to you guys. Second, I forgot to mention this in class that Midterms will start in two weeks. And whoever has the highest score, I will buy them pizza. So good luck. You're the first person and I will email the rest shortly.**

**Good night.  
-Tony Stark**

Peter smiled. He didn't even like horror movies. He'd honestly prefer do a marathon of Gravity Falls or build a lego set, but it nice to know that some teachers care about their students mental health.

Peter then frowned when Mister Stark mentioned Midterms. Great...

It didn't mean the fact that he failed at them, it just meant that he hated studying and wanting to bang his head against his head whenever he was frustrated.

Maybe the rest of classes will make him want to do that, but he knows that Algebra class will be okay.

* * *

Two weeks zipped through like lightening.

For the last two weeks, Peter and his friends were jotting down notes their teachers were pointing out. Studying the notes until it was about 4am in the morning, whether on the phone, library, each others house or even during lunch.

Peter didn't want to fail his first year of Midterms as a highschooler, which meant he was going to study as hard as the gum that was stuck to students desks.

His friends were right behind them, not caring if they looked like the dead when they entered their classes. They wanted to succeed, just like Peter.

Some teachers were concerned and some shrugged, saying that its called determination. Though, there was a different between wanting to succeed and also burning yourself out.

Mister Stark was probably the most concerned out of all the teachers.

"Geez guys, you look like you were ran over by a bus," he whistled.

MJ plopped herself in her chair, with a moody expression on her face. "Its called wanting to succeed, get used to it," she replied, her tone sharp. Mister Stark held up her hands, not willing to get into a cat fight.

"We were up almost all night to study for Midterms," Peter said tiredly, burying his head into his arms.

"Seriously? It doesn't start until Monday," Mister Stark exclaimed.

"Its Friday," MJ pointed out.

"You have the weekend to go over your nights. How long have you been studying?" He asked.

"For the last two weeks." Peter's voice was muffled in his arms. He heard Mister Stark give an exasperated sigh. "So what? You've been secretly taking notes and doing homework  _and_ studying as well. Not to mention Decathlon."

MJ snorted. "Its called school, Mister Stark. You're a teacher, shouldn't you know how this works?" she asks.

"I'm a first time teacher. I've only been teacher for a little over 6 months. I wasn't expecting this," he said, pointing at the two tired teenager. Peter propped his head up to see Mister Stark's concerned face.

"Welcome to school, you want a refund?" He yawned.

Tony didn't have time to answer, when MJ looked took a swig of something from the thermos cup and then scowled at it. "Damn it...I'm out of tea..."

Peter craned his neck. "I wish I had some tea...and maybe a bit of coffee," he sighed. "I don't even think we're even allowed to have drinks other than water here."

"Oh, so adults can have some, but the children that actually are staying up and trying to get good grades can't have any? I call that bullshit..."

"MJ," Peter warned, earning an accusing glare from her.

Tony stayed silent and watched as the teenagers got into a small argument. The rest of the class filled in and he saw another girl with tired eyes, and a boy with disheveled hair, and saggy posture.

God, these kids were studying hard.

He knew what it was like to over burn. He had a overbearing father, that is. And that's what pushed him into studying hard, but the kids...it was purely because they wanted to succeed.

The school bell rang and the class was silent. Shaking his head, he started the lesson.

* * *

"Miss Jones and Mister Parker," Mister Stark called them when everyone was packing up for their next classes. "I would like for you to stay here for a moment."

MJ and Peter stayed in their seats, watching students leave one by one.

When everyone left, they sluggishly walked to the teacher's desk. Mister Stark looked at them with stern eyes.

"You shouldn't studying so hard. It will make you get more mistakes then when you're not sleep deprived," he said softly. The students shared a glance and they both shrugged.

"Mister Stark, with all due respect, there's a reason why we went to Midtown tech. Its expensive to go here and we want to succeed and not let our parents money go to waste," Peter answered.

"Plus, its the new generation." MJ shrugged, "More and more children are being pressured into doing stuff. This isn't the 19th century any more. Mental health is at the lowest bar of being the most concerned. School is now at the tippy top. You'd be surprised on how many teenagers you teach have mental illness due to school." She said bluntly.

Peter hesitated, but nodded in agreement.

"Even if it is bad for our health, this is school, and like MJ said, its not the 19th century anymore. School is getting harder and finding more ways of learning."

Tony felt something in his chest that made him want to scream at the school system. They were right.

_Of course they were freaking right. Screw the stupid school system._

" _Kids_ ," he exasperated. "Whether the school system sucks or not, you need rest."

"Once Midterms is done, we'll rest, but for now? We have a Midterm tests to think about," MJ said coolly. Mister Stark looked at Peter who was looking down, biting his lip. He knew that Peter was agreeing to MJ.

Tony sighed in defeat. He stood up and took something out of his back pocket.

"Here, get some tea at Starbucks or something to keep you energized during Midterms," he said. The two glanced at each other with skeptical eyes, but they took it and shoved the cards in their pocket.

"Now get outta here and  _please,_ just rest for like an hour, alright?"

"No promises," MJ mumbled.

"What she means," Peter nudged MJ's shoulder with his own. "We'll try our best. Thank you, Mister Stark." And they were out.

Tony sighed.  _Teenagers._

* * *

"Mister Stark gave me and 3 others a Starkbucks card," Ned said tiredly, holding up the shiny, silver card. They were walking out of school, ready for today to be over. Its been so tiring.

"Ditto," Both MJ and Peter mumbled, showing Ned their own cards.

"How much money do you think he gave us?" Ned asked as they walked out of the school building. Peter took out his phone while yawning. So far, the first highschool Midterms sucked hell.

Peter called the card and punched in the numbers. He waited and for the first time in 6 hours, his eyes widened in astonishment.

"Holy fudge!" Peter yelled, startling Ned and MJ.

"What?" Ned asked quickly.

"He put $50 in our Starkbuck cards!" Peter exclaimed.

Their eyes widened in shock.

Really?

"Give me your phone," MJ said, snatching the phone. She took out her card and dialed in her number. Going silent, she handed the phone back to Peter.

"Same," she whispered.

Ned was already looking up on his own phone and gasped. "Me as well!"

"Omigoshomigishomigosh," Peter repeated.

"Well, I guess we gotta thank him tomorrow," Ned said, and then grinned at his two best friends. "Anyone up for Starkbucks and studying?"

MJ chuckled. "Hell yeah."

* * *

Peter ordered a Hibiscus tea. Ned ordered a Caramel Macchiato, and MJ got some hot Chai tea for herself. They were sitting in the corner with large books covering the table. They already texted their parents, saying that they were studying at a Cafe and will be home in a little while.

"This tea is so good," Peter moaned, slurping his cool tea.

"Nothing like a nice cup of Caramel coffee to wake you up," Ned said, smiling.

"Or Chai tea." MJ replied, smirking.

They sipped their beverages while asking Midterm questions to each other. Sometimes they would laugh, or smile. Peter was glad that they were enjoying themselves and it was nice to take a break from studying.

They even saw other students that came from the same school, saying that Mister Stark gave them a Starbucks card. Some stayed and some left quickly. Non the less, Peter was heartwarmed by how caring his teacher was to all of them.

While Peter waited for his refill on his tea, he looked around the atmosphere and saw people chatting away, or quietly working on their computers. It was a nice atmosphere. Comforting and welcoming as well. He gazed a little towards the back and saw a person with glasses on and a newspaper hiding his face, but as he squinted, he saw the familiar glasses.

_Oh God._

_That Mister Stark._

His teacher looked up and Peter quickly turned his head somewhere else. He had gotten a second peek at his teacher who was warily looking around, as if trying not to be caught.

He wondered if Mister Stark knew that him and his friends were coming here afterwards to study, and he decided to check on them.

It was creepy to say the least, but also very sweet.

"Sir, your tea is done," One of the employee said. Peter shook away his thoughts and smiled at them. "Thanks, dude."

MJ met him half way to refill her own tea. She was smiling slyly.

"The fact that Mister Stark is watching us is weird and sweet at the same time," she said. Peter laughed out loud, getting some people to stare at them, but he didn't care.

"No kidding, do you think he knows we know?" He asked.

MJ shrugged, but a playful grin crept onto her face. "If he doesn't, then we should totally think we're in a secret relationship," she joked. "Imagine his facial expression if took a glance at us." It was almost out of character for MJ to act like that, but it made Peter rethink his decision.

Peter smiled mischievously. "Why not?" He asked.

MJ blushed a bit, and he knew that he was blushing too.

"I dunno," MJ replied bluntly, but non the less, smiling.

He saw Mister Stark look at him and took the plunge, kissing MJ on the lips. His eyes were closed and he could feel MJ's soft lips meet his. Her lips tasted like Chai tea (Obviously) mixing with his hibiscus tea.

They let go and Peter took a peek at Mister Stark's wide eyes and mouth gaped open, but it was a second later when he rose his newspaper up to his face to be well hidden again. Peter averted his eyes, quickly, to MJ who was smiling.

"That was nice. Now tell me, describe him so I can draw him," she said.

"Take a notebook out," Peter chuckled. "I'll be descriptive."

"Good," She said, grabbing her new tea and taking Peter's hand to guide him to the table. Taking one last peek at Mister Stark's table, and he could see their teacher still looking at him dazedly. He didn't even think that Mister Stark noticed him.

"Omigosh," Ned exclaimed. "You two kissed!"

"Calm down," Peter laughed. "Mister Stark was here and we decided to tease him."

"Oh and draw him," He said after MJ took out her crisis book out.

"So girlfriend and boyfriend?" Ned asked the two.

MJ shrugged. "You could say." Peter laughed and followed. "Shh, its a secret."

Ned snorted and went back to studying while Peter explained Mister Stark's face and MJ drawing him, listening intently. And lets just say...MJ was very pleased with the art she drew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hehe...(Stark is gonna be the one who is gonna pair teenagers up to their crushes)
> 
> Thank you for those who reviewed <3
> 
> Secondly, I wanted to ask if I could add Spideychelle before, but never had the chance. I understand if you're not into that ship, but imma be honest and I don't add spideychelle to irondad content, but seeing as some people still pm me and accuse me of adding st*rker, I might as well add it. Anywho, to answer your concerned questions.
> 
> 1\. No, Spideychelle is not gonna be the center of this Fic. I made this fic purely made of parent Tony.
> 
> 2\. I swear to freaking hills on valleys, if so much one sends me another pm about me adding st*rker, i will blow out my brains in hopes i forget that st*rker even exists.
> 
> 3\. Can I add some Betty/Ned into it too? XD
> 
> and last but not least, if you actually enjoy spideychelle content, would you like me to add more to it?
> 
> [Tumblr](https://mercymaeyo.tumblr.com/)  
> 


	4. A Blurry History

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony starts talking about his personal life and Peter starts to notice that the world is blurry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys so much for the lovely comments. It really does help me gain inspiration for this fic :) Love ya guys and Enjoy!~

"Alright, class, settle your little butts down. I have your test scores right here," Mister Stark began as he passed out the Midterm scores to his students. "If you got a signature, it means you are part of the pizza party for this Friday," he said.

The class bell rang and everyone shuffled out with their test scores clutched in their hands. Some were pretty satisfied, and other's just huffed a puff of air with indignant expressions. Mostly Flash.

"Oh and by the way," Tony called out to his class, keeping his calm demeanor. "I didn't grade your grades, don't get cocky with me if you didn't meet your goal. Have a nice day, kiddos."

Peter smirked when Flash rolled his eyes and stomped away from the class.

He was a bit slower to pack up, but he felt a shoulder nudge him. Turning around, he saw MJ with a sly smile and holding her papers up. "I got in," she said. Peter smiled and nodded. "Ditto."

"I'm pretty sure Ned got in too," MJ mused, earning a scoff from Peter.

"No doubt."

They exchanged smiles, and he kept packing up while MJ waited for him. Since the Starbucks 'confession', he and MJ were a bit closer than usual.

"So, should I vote for you to be prom queen and king?" A voice backtracked on them. They turned around to see Mister Stark leaning against his teacher's chair and feet up in the air, being supported by the desk and smirking.

"Haha, very funny, Mister Stark," Peter teased.

"Please," Tony scoffed. Peter noticed that maybe their teacher didn't notice that they knew he was there.

"At least it fun drawing you in a shocked faze at Starkbucks." MJ shrugged.

"You knew I was there?" Tony asked, raising his brow at them and slightly impressed.

"Your glasses stand out," Peter pointed out, slinging his backpack on.

Tony glanced at his aviator glasses and clicked his tongue. "To obvious?" he asks.

Peter and MJ nodded.

"Yep." They both popped the 'p'

The man sighed in defeat. "So, there's nothing really going on around you too, is there?"

"Not yet," MJ started, earning a shocked facial expression from Peter. "But, you should vote for Betty and Ned. Have you seen them giving each other googly eyes?"

And that was no mistake. While Peter and MJ were developing their own crushes, Ned and Betty were on their way to young love as well. Even though they were young, they're starting to find out what love really was. Not just a 'crush' or 'cooties' but something different.

Mister Stark smirked. "The joys of young love."

Before anyone could answer or even think, MJ walked out, and the school bell rang. Peter gave a quick wave to Mister Stark before running after MJ. Once he caught up, he was kinda flushed, but in a good way?

"So, not yet, huh?" Peter asked.

"You haven't even asked me on a date, loser," She replied, smiling.

"Soon," Peter nodded in determination. MJ laughed and shook her head. "Take your time, nerd, we're still young as hell," she said. Peter smiled and from then on, they walked to lunch in silence.

* * *

"Are you going to the pizza party?" Peter asked as he slammed his tray of food on the table. Ned nodded enthusiastically.

"Yep! I'm guessing you guys too?"

They both nodded.

"It kind of reminds me of elementary school," Peter joked, poking at his deceased looking food.

"Yeah, like when he got an amount of books to read and if we finish it, we get a pizza party," Ned said.

"What are we? 9?" MJ asked.

Peter shrugged nonchalantly. "I dunno, but if its pizza, its pizza."

"Touche," Ned pointed finger guns at his best friend.

* * *

MJ had an early dismissal during 5th period, so Peter was alone at photography.

He walked aimlessly, trying to get some decent pictures. It was starting to get a tad boring to take pictures of the same things over and over again. But, it helped soothe his overworked mind sometimes.

Though, he could complain about not seeing correctly. He talked about it to his Aunt and she said she would make an appointment. His eyes were failing on him and it annoyed him to the maximum.

He complained about during studying as well, telling his friends that it hurt to look at the blurry words. His friends would try to read it for him, but he still didn't like the fact he couldn't read anything without pressing his face against his book.

While walking, he saw Mister Stark sitting on a stair block, just looking around.

He saw his math teacher wave at him, and grin slightly.

"Hi, Mister Stark," Peter greeted as he walked to the man.

"Why hello student of mine," Tony said, back straightening for a proper greeting.

Peter smirked and gestured his hand towards the open space stair block. "Is this taken?"

Tony rolled his eyes, but Peter saw a quick quirk of the man's lips before patting the empty space. He sat down and sighed loudly, outstretching his legs and feeling the sun beat down on his legs. Its been awhile since the sun has come out and it was quite warm today.

Winter was almost gone and Peter couldn't wait til it was over.

"How's photography?" Mister Stark asks.

Peter shook his thoughts away and smiled at his teacher. "Its getting pretty boring, but its the only time where its actually serene," Peter says.

Mister Stark huffed out a laugh. "School too noisy for ya?"

"I'm already waiting for Summer break," Peter jokes.

Tony chuckled and slapped a hand on the his back. "Another 6 months and you'll be free as a bird," he says, grinning.

"Wish it would come sooner," Peter mumbled.

"What? Got anything planned for this Summer?"

Peter shook his head and shrugged. "Nothing that I know of, you?"

"Might be visiting CA with my fiancee-"

"Wait," Peter held up a hand, and was beyond confused. "You have a fiancee?"

"Yep, we're getting married next August." Tony smirked when Peter looked at him in pure shock.

"Really?! Congratulations, Mister Stark!" Peter exclaimed.

"Thanks, kid," he smiled.

"Are you inviting your students?" Peter asks playfully, quirking a brow up.

Tony snorted. "And let you guys eat all the cake? Nuh-uh."

"Worth the shot."

The man chuckled and looked at his student. Something inside the boy held such kindness and intelligence that he saw in himself. Maybe not the kindness, he himself, was snarky, but intelligent wise, definitely.

"Does this means you don't have kids of your own?" Peter asked randomly, not even looking at him. Tony was taken back by the question, but non the less, answered it.

"No, I don't. I guess didn't really think of it." It was somewhat of a truth. Tony never wanted kids in the first place, thinking he would be a bad dad or become like his overbearing father, and decided to ignore his heart strings tugging whenever he saw a couple with their own kids.

"Oh," Peter said quietly.

"Heh," Tony chuckled darkly. "I'm not so much of a caring person, y'know?"

As if he turned on a switch, Peter craned his neck towards the man and raised an eyebrow at him.

"Weren't you the one to hand out 50$ Starkbuck's cards? Not to mention give students a pizza party to those who worked hard to get a good test score on Midterms?" Peter asked.

The billionaire chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his head. "Yes?"

"And the fact that you spied back in the Starkbucks itself?"

"Okay!" Tony held up his hands in defeat. "Yes, it was all me," he sighed, rubbing his face against his hands.

Peter opened his mouth to speak, but decided against it.

From then on, they stayed silent while Peter looked around and tried to take pictures from where he was sitting at. Tony busied himself by playing with the hem of his shirt and peering over at Peter's camera to see what he's taken of.

The school bell rang and Peter groaned loudly.

"Not a big fan of P.E, huh?" Tony laughed as he sat up and watched Peter grudgingly haul himself up too.

"I hate it," was all he said. And Tony could very much tell that his student really did hate it. His expression, mood and posture yelling at him.

"Aww, don't be like that, kiddo," He assured. "Think of it as a healthy thing."

Peter rolled his eyes. "Yay," he said pathetically.

"Alright, scamp, get out of here." Tony said, and without even thinking about it, he ruffled the kid's curly hair. Both of them froze and Peter smiled bashfully. The kid's hair was so soft...and really curly.

It was kinda...cute?

Tony retracted his hand and smiled back, though, a bit embarrassed that he did it.

Peter moved to turn around, but halted and once again faced his teacher.

"By the way, I think you do care. You may not be able to see it for yourself, but you can emphasize with students more than other teachers can. So, thanks for caring, Mister Stark." And with that, the boy was gone.

His heart tugged at the words, but in a calm, weird way. The compliment was genuine and kind of him to say. Tony Stark wasn't known to show kindness or was part of the caring side, but those words meant the world to him.

* * *

 

"I'm ready to combust," Peter murmured tiredly, as he did his last lap around the gym. They had to do 15 laps and with Peter having Asthma, it wasn't very fun for him.

"Me too, man," Ned huffed.

"Pick up your feet, Leeds and Parker!" Coach Wilson barked, the whistle shrieking as he blew into it.

"Can someone please throw that whistle away?" Peter whined.

"Only a madman would do such a thing," Ned sighed, slowing down every so slightly. Peter's cheeks were bright red and sweat clung heavily on his temples.

Once they finished their laps, a woman dressed in business clothing walked in, her heels clicking against the gym floors. Coach Wilson met her half way and Peter watched them exchange a quiet conversation to each other.

Coach Wilson nodded and blew the whistle again to get the attention of the class.

"Peter Parker! You have an early dismissal. Pack your bags and go to the office once you are done," He instructed. Peter stood up and looked over at his friend who mouthed, 'Lucky' and gave him a thumbs up.

Peter smiled anxiously and walked to the doors, ignoring the way Flash looked at him.

Going to the boy's locker room and changing out of his gym clothes, he thought of the reasons why he had an early dismissal. It was highly unlikely for him to get an early dismissal, considering that Aunt May worked a lot.

With his backpack hanging off his back, he walked the empty halls, passing occupied classes, and eventually passing Mister Stark's room.

When he walked passed it, he saw Mister Stark look at him, raise a brow and then continued on with teaching his proceeding class.

Entering the office, he saw the previous woman that was in the gym asking for him, sitting at the front desk.

There was a nameplate standing.

 _Mrs. Cooper_ it read, and Peter swallowed before heading to her desk.

"I heard I got an early dismissal?" Peter said.

The woman looked up and nodded. "Yes, your Aunt signed you out and is waiting outside for you," she said, pointing to the exit, which sounded like she wanted him gone as soon as possible.

"Oh, thank you!" He said cheerfully, but only resulted in the woman to go back to doing her work.

* * *

Spotting his Aunt May's worn out car, he rushed to it and saw Aunt May waving through the open car window.

"Hey, sweetie!" May welcomed, letting her nephew slide in gracefully. Peter nodded back and threw his backpack in the back of the car.

The car started and May exited the school's ground. Though, Peter was slightly confused when she turned the opposite way their home was.

"Um, where are we going?" He asked.

"Ophthalmologist. They were able to squeeze you in today," she replied, turning on her right blinkers.

"Oh," Peter said.

"Sorry if it was all sudden, but I couldn't seem to find a perfect date and i'm off today, and one of their appointments was postponed and they asked if today worked, so I said yes."

"That's fine," Peter said quickly. "I was just surprised that we found an eye doctor so quickly."

"Me neither," May laughed quietly.

It was often times that Peter and May didn't have good insurance and it would take weeks or months to get into a doctors appointment.

But, they were thankful.

* * *

"Hello, I'm Dr. Lee, I'll be examining your eyes today," he greeted, shaking hands with him. Afterwards, he sat down on the rolling chair and took out a clipboard.

"I heard your having time seeing?" Dr. Lee asked, pen at the hand.

Peter nodded. "I have to see closely to read and it kind of hurts to see everything blurry," he said, watching the doctor jot down those notes. The doctor nodded and pulled out sterilized gloves.

"Okay, we're going to do some eye exams to see what the problem is." Dr. Lee smiled encouragingly and took out a flashlight?

After the many exams, including the Eye muscle test, Visual acuity test, refracting assessment and some other exams that he barely knew what they were called.

The last exam, however, was Peter's least favorite.

"Okay, I want to do a screening test for glaucoma. Its basically when your optic nerve is damaged, but Its not common in children under 18, but we're going to check anyways." He said, taking out two types of eyedrops. He pointed at each of them. "One of them will numb your your eyes and the next, we'll put fluorescein. Sounds good?"

Peter nodded and the chair reclined as he saw the Doctor in full view. The liquid hit his eyeball and they waited for a couple of seconds beore dropping the next liquid inside his eyeball.

He blinked and grabbed a tissue to rub off the extra liquid off his cheeks.

Dr. Lee looked into a weird microscope. It didn't take more than 2 minutes for him to write something down and push away the machine away from them.

Peter blinked. It was oddly bright for a room to be this...dark.

"Well, Peter, it seems like you need glasses," Dr. Lee said. "Luckily for you, we'll be able to send you new ones by next week."

"Great..." Peter mumbled, wiping more his moist eyes. Why was he tearing up?

"Oh, because of the fluorescein, your eyes will be more sensitive to bright lights. I'll send you some black out glasses for you to wear on your way out," he said, smiling.

"Okay."

* * *

"How'd it go?" May asked quickly as she saw her nephew walking out of the exams room.

"I'm getting glasses," he mumbled unhappily.

"Oh, honey," May whispered, hugging him.

"I hate it," he said, burying his nose in her shoulder. May rubbed his back. "Honey, it won't be that bad, I promise."

"But what if someone makes fun of me at school?" Peter whined.

"They're just jealous, hon," she reassured, even though it led no comfort.

Peter grunted, feeling miserable, whether from getting glasses or the stupid fluorescein.

"Why don't we pick your new glasses, hm?" May asked, as they let go of their hug and dragged him over to the glasses display. Peter winced as the lights hit him with full blast. Putting on these black out glasses, he sighed in relief.

"Ooh! What about these?" May asked, holding a circled glasses that resembled of Harry Potter's glasses.

"Yeah." Peter rolled his eyes. "All I need his Harry Potter's mark on my forehead," he said sarcastically.

May laughed and put them away.

For what felt like forever, Peter picked one that was in the range of their budget and looked somewhat decent. Shape was rectangle, but the frames were thinner and it looked bold from what his Aunt said.

They ordered it and it was confirmed. The woman at the desk said it'll arrive in less than 2 weeks and will call when its available. On the way home, Peter had his arms crossed and was pouting.

"Come on," May lightly shoved her nephew's shoulder. "Having glasses is fun. I should know."

"I know...I'm just worried," Peter said, bowing his head down, his black out glasses scooting off the bridge of his nose. He pushed it up, but to no avail.

"Everyone will be jealous," May said softly.

"More like make fun of," Peter sighed.

"You know, Uncle Ben had glasses when he was young," May started. Peter looked at her with a shocked expression. "He did?"

He has never seen his uncle Ben wear glasses before. If anything, he said he had good eyesight when Peter was young.

"Yep!" She popped the 'p'

"But when you came along, he wore contacts," she laughed. "Didn't want the young ones to think he was too old or something."

Peter giggled.

"But, when he was about your age, he hated them too, but he spent time with friends who didn't care about his appearance, and ignored the people that did. All I'm saying is that its okay. Your're not perfect, but you're you. And that's perfection."

A small crept up on his lips.

"So you think it'll be okay?"

May quirked her eyesbrows playfully.

"Your asking me? The Aunt who had glasses forever and you uncle as well, that everything will be okay? Seriously?"

Peter laughed out loud, a huge smile plastered on his face.

"Yes," he said impishly.

May laughed and shook her head in dismay, but she gazed her face towards her nephews when they stopped at a red light. "You'll do more than okay, I promise."

Peter grinned. "Thanks Aunt May."

They drove in silence afterwards until they stopped at an Indian take out restaurant.

"Though, I don't think either us will be okay if I cook, so we'll get some take out," she joked.

Peter blew out a breath of relief.

May punched his shoulder in fake annoyance, and Peter smirked at her innocently.

"I gotta live to see my new glasses," he said, shrugging.

"Damn right you do," she sighed, a twinkle in her eyes that reminded of his mom. The thought hurt it, but everything was okay.

_Okay._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OHHHH OUR BOI IS GETTING GLASSES :D That might be a problem...don't worry, the whump is coming next chapter *cough* no thanks to Flash *cough*
> 
> As always, reviews are greatly appreciated and to the quiet readers, thank you for reading too. If you see any mistakes, please let me know and also, I have glasses, but I'm no expert of medical eye stuff, just a heads up :) 
> 
> And next chapter, I want to ask if you want me too add Tony reacting to MJ's drawing of him? Thanks!
> 
> (I also love the headcannon of Peter getting glasses, so I'm adding them. Will he have them forever? HMMMMM... idk lol)
> 
> Come say hello on [Tumblr!](https://mercymaeyo.tumblr.com/)  
> 


	5. Bully x3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flash get his revenge. Tony is concerned for Peter.
> 
> Warning: This deals with major bullying (Abuse), mention of eating disorder, panic attacks and foul language. If you're uncomfortable with this, I suggest you skip this chapter. Please be safe.

Tony noticed Peter was in a particular bad mood today.

When the boy entered, he made no comment and sat down with an exasperated huff. The girl, Michelle, came up to him and started talking to him, but he sighed again and buried his head inside his arms. Even Flash wasn't able to taunt him, which Tony told the boy, sternly, to sit down and leave Peter alone.

When class had started, Peter made no intention of raising his hands to answer his questions either.

Tony has seen some students in a bad mood once in awhile, but they have always brightened up when they were in his class. He was actually getting worried about his student, Peter.

Peter was slumped forward in his desk, casually tapping his pencil on the unsullied sheet of paper.

Though, like any teacher, they would probably tell the distracted student to focus and jot down these 'important' notes, but Mister Stark did the opposite. He knew some of students lives and its tough.

Tony gave sympathy towards his unhappy students and would often give them mercy.

So that's what he did with Peter.

Considering that Peter was well-behaved and focused in his class. It was very odd to see Peter so down and glum.

When the school bell rang, Tony quickly made a reminder for his high test scored students.

"Remember! During lunch, the pizza party will be here. I'll see some of you soon," he said, waving to some students that waved him a goodbye. Tony wanted to talk to Peter about his gloomy mood, but didn't have much time, because Peter fled the room.

Tony sighed in defeat, and sat down.

He looked up and saw MJ still packing up her stuff slowly.

"Jones," he said firmly. MJ looked up with a blank expression, hair falling in her face.

"Yeah?"

"Peter seemed a bit down, don't you think?" Tony asked casually, but was a bit worried.

MJ squinted, already telling that this teacher was concerned for this particular student. She could practically see the worry in his eyes.

"From someone who wears sunglasses all the time, you express your concerns with your eyes," She replied bluntly, not even answering the question Tony threw at her. The teacher blinked and sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

God, these kids were smart.

"And how is this even relevant to the question I just asked?"

MJ shrugged. "The fact that you care," she answered. "Guess everyone has their ways of showing sympathy, or kindness."

"How so?" Tony grumbled, rubbing his temples.

"Oh I don't know. Letting students take a nap if they look like shit, as long as they visit after school to be taught the lesson. Not getting angry at them if they show annoyance. Being firm when needing too. Giving us pizza for working hard. Might I mention Starbucks cards for Midterms," she said nonchalantly, playing her with her strap as she stared down at her teacher. It was like the conversation with Peter before, only she was a bit more descriptive. Non the less, many students seemed to notice how Tony shows his care towards his students.

"Observant, aren't you now?" He quirked a small smile at her.

"Please, I could list more items, but I'm going to be late," she said, trudging to the door.

"See you at Lunch time," he said tiredly.

MJ peeked at the man who had his closed and head bowed down as if praying.

"Glasses," she said, turning around her attention towards Mister Stark. "Peter's getting glasses. He wasn't able to see during school, and now he has to get glasses."

Tony whipped his head up and mild shock, but he nodded.

"Never happened," MJ whispered, backing out the door, gaze still on him.

Mister Stark chuckled and zipped his lips up. "Nothing happened."

The girl gave him a sly smile and left. Tony hasn't really seen MJ smile that much. She was pretty...apathetic, but him, she was just a dedicated child like the rest of them. Tony brought out Peter Parker's latest work and looked at intently.

There were smudges of erased pencil, some words were misspelled and others looked sloppy. He could see the struggle with Peter not having glasses. Remembering the time where he saw his student squinting at the board and and then standing up from behind his desk to look at it. It all made sense.

Out of the blue, Tony opened his desk drawer, showcasing old glasses. He took them out and observed them. Its been a long time since he's worn them, mostly because he wore contacts, but it brought memories of being bullied as well for wearing glasses and jazz like that.

Tony jolted when handful of his students waltzed in with wide smiles.

"Ohh, you wear glasses, Mister Stark?" A young girl with glasses on, adorning a high ponytail. Her hair was ombre of brown and golden blonde, a sweatshirt and some jeans. Tony was always fascinated by how kids express themselves through style. Each and every one of them had unique personality that made them their own person.

Tony grinned. "Yep, I might wear them today," he said. The girl laughed. "Welcome to the club," she joked.

"Am I the president?" He asked, earning another laugh from her. His heart was always warmed by how many students he was able to make laugh. Something about a laugh was joyous deep down by everyone.

Something he wished he had as a child. Something...he hoped that his own child will have...if anything.

"Sure, if you want too," she says, smiling.

Tony shook his head. "Nah, you have a prettier face than me. I'll resign."

The girl smiled warmly. "Thank you, Mister Stark. You could be my Vice president if you'd like to be. I'll approve." She said playfully.

"I'm already president of Math, kiddo, but thanks anyways," he said, smiling.

* * *

"I don't want glasses," Peter pouted.

He has been moody since this morning and nothing seemed to have brighten up his day. Not even his favorite class. Peter was like this for the last 3 periods and nothing seemed to have gotten better.

"Come on, man, its not that bad. My grandma wears them and she looks good!" Ned encouraged, but earned a look from Peter.

"So, I'll look like a grandma?"

"No, no!" Ned exclaimed, holding his hands in defense.

"Stop being grumpy Peter," MJ sighed. "Its not cute."

Peter held his grumpiness, but a blush was creeping up on his cheeks.

"Aww, well looks like its Pouty Penis Parker." A voice caught them from behind. The group turned around to see Flash and his friends smirking at them with blood lust in their eyes.

"What do you want?" Peter fumed, not wanting to take any bullshit from him.

"Watch your mouth, potty brain," Flash smirked, then snapped his fingers, and then pointing at the boy.

The bully's buff friends walked towards the group and they were ready to run, but Peter was shoved back against the numerous lockers behind him.

Grunting, he saw a locker open and then being shoved inside it. Despite being highschool, he was still small enough to fit in a locker, which was pretty sad and annoying at the same time.

"Leave him alone!" His friend yelled.

"Nah, I prefer to use my revenge here." Flash's voice made him shiver. It was full of venom.

"I'm gonna tell a teacher," Ned threatened.

He heard Flash chuckle. "What a freaking snitch. But, if you want to play dirty, then I'll no choice to shove you guys in another locker as well." Another click and he heard his friends struggle against the other buff students.

"Flash, you son of a bitch!" MJ yelled, as she grunted at the sudden force that came upon her. The group continued to shove the girl inside the locker, which mildly surprised Flash.

"Wow, I actually didn't think you could fit in the locker," Flash mused. "What are you? Anorexic?"

MJ stayed quiet, and Flash smirked darkly as he found this apathetic girl's weak spot.

"So," Flash said. "You're a freak too?"

"Shut up!" MJ yelled, still having that burning desire to kick Flash's ass.

"Hmph." Flash clicked his tongue. "Nevermind you, I got Ned to tie up in the bathroom. Ciao!"

Peter and MJ heard struggling grunts from Ned and then...silence. The halls were empty, considering that lunch was going on and most of the students are on the other side of the school right now.

Peter was struggling to find a way out. MJ punched the locker to get someones attention, but lunch was already in motion and it was on the other side of the school. Peter couldn't breathe. His mind was fogged up. His eyes were widened in fear. Hands clenching so tightly, blood stained his hands as it dripped slowly off his hands.

"I-I can't breathe," Peter choked, tears blurring his eyes.

"Just breathe, Pete," She said aloud, shifting and slamming her hands against the locker. He heard her trying to tinker with a bobby pin and lock.

"Come on," MJ murmured as she tried to pick the lock out.

Her hands fumbled weakly as she tried, but to no avail, nothing happened.

"Damnit!" she cried out.

The two were silent, only hearing heavy breaths from both of them. Peter swallowed thickly, his mouth feeling like he had paste in his mouth.

"We're stuck, aren't we?" He asked, barely a whisper.

"I don't know..." MJ admitted just as quietly. "God, I hope Ned is alright," she sighed.

Peter inhaled and exhaled, trying to calm himself. Its been awhile since he's been shoved in a locker. Probably since the beginning of school, but now...it felt like last year.

"Are you okay?" She asked. Peter glanced at her through the cracks of the locker, finding her eyes between one of the cracks as well.

"No," Peter croaked out.

* * *

Ned fumbled with his wrists as he tried to break free of these ropes. He was stuck to a toilet, to which he did not planned to be attached to a toilet.

"Finally!" Ned gasped as he tore off the rest of rope. He rubbed his swollen wrists in comfort. The bullies tied him so tight that it left red marks and Ned was honestly thinking that they cut off his circulation at that time.

Hands still sore and swollen, he winced as he barged the door open and rushed out to find his friends. It had only been somewhat 25 minutes after the lunch bell rang, and he would only have about 10 minutes before the next period came.

Knowing that Peter had claustrophobia and would definitely get a panic attack, Ned ran as fast as he could to get to his friends. Although, he didn't know if MJ had that fear, but it was scary enough that they decided to shove her in a locker as well.

 _Please, Peter, you better be breathing,_ Ned prayed as he ran down the halls. So many lockers were arrayed and he honestly was panicking to much and missed some turns.

 _Oh my gosh, where are you-?!_ Ned stumbled upon a tall teacher. Looking up with wide eyes and fear, he saw his and his friends Algebra teacher standing before him.

"Ned, I was wondering where you, Peter and MJ were, you guys are missing some pretty good pizza," Tony said, smiling, but there was worry shining in the man's eyes. Truth be told, Ned seemed to have forgotten the pizza party.

"Mister Stark," Ned squeaked.

"Yep, that's me. Now wanna tell me why you're running full blast around the halls?" He asked seriously.

Ned bit his lip and contemplated if he should admit or lie, but lets be real...he was really bad at lying.

"I-I was- need to go to the bathroom," he said slowly, lying horribly.

Tony raised a brow. "You do realize you're going the opposite way."

Ned laughed nervously. "Silly me. I guess I can just go ahead and go-" While Ned was rambling about going to the bathroom, Tony saw how Ned was holding his wrists.

It was swollen, blemishes of red marks seethed in the student's skin.

"Ned," Tony cut him off with a stern voice. Ned clamped his mouth shut and gulped. "Have someone been bullying you?"

"What? No-No! I-" Ned looked down at his wrists and instantly knew he was caught. He wished he wore long sleeves now.

"Answer me, Ned," Tony said quietly. "Have someone been bullying you?"

"Yes." Ned confessed quietly. "But-But...I-he- Peter and MJ," He stuttered.

"So you're not the only one being bullied?" Tony asked, anger gleaming in his eyes. Ned nodded vigorously, albeit afraid of what this teacher will do.

Tony looked around the halls. There was no sign of Peter or MJ. Where were they? They practically glued to each other, unless they were in their respective classes.

"Where are they?" Tony asked, gazing at Ned, who had the most panicked expression he has ever seen.

"The Locker!" Ned gasped, suddenly remembering his friends being stuck.

"Bring me to them," Tony instructed. Ned was way ahead of him, as he ran right past the man and to the occupied lockers.

* * *

Peter and MJ helplessly stayed in their small confinement of a room and prayed that Ned would come to their rescue.

Its been almost 30 minutes and the next period was about to start. They didn't even have lunch, so that was double negativity for them.

"Peter?!" A voice called out. "MJ?!" It rang again. Peter banged the locker door with such force, it was bound to get the attention of someone.

"Over here!" MJ yelled.

They heard footsteps falling fast and...more?

"Guys, guys!" Ned exclaimed, suddenly right in front of the the lockers and crouching down.

"Ned, thank God!" MJ breathed.

"Please get us out of here," Peter begged, suddenly feeling a wave of overwhelming emotion. It was the desperation of wanting to get out of this hell hole right now.

"We will," Ned reassured. "We just need to the locker combination."

"I- I don't know them," Peter said quickly, suddenly panicking.

"Breathe, Pete, I got someone to help," Ned said. Peter saw his friend stand up and let another person come into front view of Peter's sight.

"Hey, kid," Tony said softly.

"M-mister Stark?" Peter whispered.

"Shh, kiddo, I got you. Just keep breathing, alright?" He soothed.

Peter felt an instant calm wash over him after hearing that. He didn't know if it was his teacher's voice that calmed him, or the fact that Tony came to help them out in a time of need.

Tony fumbled with the lock combination and the locker opened. Peter weakly leaned forward, but his legs felt numb from not being able to move it for so long. He grasped the handle and prepared to stand up, but legs buckling down, he fell and Tony caught him.

"Its okay, kid, I got you," Tony whispered, letting Peter grasp his jacket. The boy started hiccuping and crying clutching the fabric in his hands, blood smearing against his teacher's jacket unknowingly.

"That locker combination is 9427. Unlock it for MJ," Tony instructed to Ned.

Tony rubbed a hand up and down Peter's spine. "Its okay, kid, you're fine," he comforted.

Hearing Peter's cries were heartbreaking to Tony. It felt like a knife to his chest and there was no way to stop it until Peter felt better.

The boy's sobs died down after a few minutes and eventually, Peter was able to stand up on his own. His eyes were rimmed with red, and tears stained his cheeks as he tried to wipe it off.

Peter looked so fragile in this current state. Tony just wanted to wrap up Peter and just comfort him, and tell him that everything was okay.

"Who did this, guys?" Tony asked, a hand firm on the boy's shoulder.

"Flash and his dickwads," MJ huffed, stretching her back in mild discomfort. Being stuck in a locker was not fun.

If Tony wasn't to distracted by Peter's shivering and wide eyes, he would've laughed at that. "Can you be more specific?"

"Uhm, I don't know Flash's asshole of friends, but they looked like jockies," Ned answered.

Tony nodded. "I'll see what I can do. For now, I suggest we go to my classroom and we can fix you guys up," he said.

"What about the nurses office?" Ned asked, confused.

"Would you rather talk about why you, Peter and MJ look so badly injured?"

Ned looked at his friends. One crossing her arms, but looked a bit shaken up. The other literally looked like he was dissociating, and hands covered in blood. He looked at his own hands.

He looked up at Mister Stark and sighed. "Got any bandaids?"

* * *

"Where is everybody?" MJ asked as they entered Mister Stark's lonely classroom. "I thought there was a pizza party going on."

"There was, but I told them I had to leave early," The teacher explained, guiding Peter to a desk chair.

MJ groaned and slapped her hand to her head. "They stole me and Peter's backpack," she mumbled.

"We'll get them back," Tony said firmly, going into his drawer and getting some random bandaid rolls with hydrogen peroxide along with it. He grabbed some paper towels and crouched right in front of Peter, who didn't flinch.

"Hey, Peter?" Tony's voice was soft as Peter went back into reality.

The boy blinked and gazed his eyes to the teacher that was right in front of him.

"I'm just going to put hydrogen peroxide on your cuts. It might sting, but it'll heal faster, is that okay?" Mister Stark asked as he gently took a hold of Peter's hand. Peter looked down at his hands, and then looked up at Mister Stark.

"Okay."

Tony smiled softly, and went on with dripping the peroxide on the cuts. The liquid bubbled up as it touched the cut and Peter winced when it seeped inside his cut. Tony dabbed a paper towel on the cut and continued with the rest of the cuts.

Once all of Peter's cuts were cleaned, he wrapped some bandaid rolls on his palms, and they were finished.

As soon as Tony was done, Peter retracted his hand quickly, still not giving eye contact to his teacher.

"You good?" Mister Stark placed a hand on Peter's shoulder.

"Yeah," Peter mumbled. "thanks."

"I still have pizza if you guys want some," Tony said, eyeing Peter with worry, but stood up straight and walked over to the boxes of pizza piled high. As if on cue, the teen's stomachs growled in hunger.

Tony chuckled when they looked in embarrassment. "Don't worry, children, the pizza lord is here to feed you," he mused, taking some slices out and onto some paper plates. He handed them each of the plates and clapped his hands, to which, the kids flinched at the loudness.

"Chow it up, the best in New York," he said, propping his rear end on the teacher's desk.

"Thanks, Mister Stark," Ned said sincerely. Tony waved it off with a small smile, all while swinging his legs back and forth.

"We still don't have our backpack," Michelle sighed, taking a bite out of the greasy morsels.

"M-maybe we can still get them?" Peter asked with innocent eyes.

"No," The teacher interrupted their plans. "I do not want you three near that student and his friends. I will tell your other teachers about them and have them separated. As for your backpacks, I can only do much," Tony said.

"Mister Stark, no offence, but have you seen Flash? He's like a wart!" MJ exclaimed, crossing her arms to her chest as she heaved a big sigh.

Tony narrowed his eyes to his student and sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose afterwards. "We'll get them by the time class-"

The school bell rang and the teens jolted, their half eaten pizza forgotten and cold now. They saw students shuffling in the halls, loud chattering and banging of lockers made them shiver.

Peter looked over to MJ. "Do we need to bring anything to Photography?"

MJ shook her head.

"I think we'll be good for today without our backpacks," Peter said, earning a glare from MJ. The girl's backpack held valuables that were irreplaceable. And by irreplaceable, her crisis sketch book.

"Okay, I will go with Ned and discuss his teacher about his stolen backpack," Tony said, hopping off and placing a hand on Ned's shoulder. "You ready?"

Ned nodded and threw his paper plate out.

Tony placed a hand on Ned's shoulder and led him out his classroom, before halting and turning around to face his two students.

"Peter, come to my classroom after school is over." And with that, he and Ned left.

MJ and Peter exchanged looks of confusion to each other, but the girl gave a reassuring smile to the boy. Peter didn't feel alright, but he smiled anyways.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm a bit nervous about this chapter...Its seems a bit out of plot and the characters are a bit OOC for my liking, but I'll let you guys decide on that. Also, if you guys are all curious about MJ, don't worry. They will have their pasts explained with all of them. That including Peter too! And yeah, Flash is really an asshole in this fic.
> 
> I never really get to see all of them being bullied. Mostly writers tend to just bully Peter, but I have a feeling that Flash would bully MJ and Ned as well. So I decided to add it. I want to get the full feel of high school, and fun fact #1, this actually happened to me and 2 other friends. My friend and I were shoved in lockers while the other was tied to a toilet...unfortunately, I had a different ending, to which the students only got suspended... Ugh, stupid school. But anyways, we were never really bothered afterwards, so thats somewhat a good thing XD
> 
> As always, feedback are always appreciated. Thank you guys :)
> 
> Have a question or concerns? [Tumblr](https://mercymaeyo.tumblr.com/)  
> or PM is always available.
> 
> [So...I watched Endgame...and instead of writing a fic of fluff, I wrote a fic of literal angst. If you seen the movie...you should read my new fic, It wasn't supposed to be you. Bring some tissues by the way :) ]


	6. Alone? Never

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes, Peter has to be reminded that not being okay...is okay.
> 
> Thank you for those who reviewed! I'm so glad everyone is enjoying this fic :)

Peter couldn't focus in Photography. He didn't even notice, but it started raining and so they couldn't go outside and take some pictures.

It was fitting though.

The boy was glum, sad and so, so down. The gloomy skies matching his own personality as of right now. MJ tried to reassure that everything was okay and that Mister Stark was getting to the bottom of this, but despite that, Peter felt like the world was against him.

MJ and Peter were in the corner of the classroom, while the rest of the students were chatting and enjoying their free time.

"We don't even have our gym clothes," Peter said quietly, burying his head in the crook of his arms.

"You didn't put them in your locker?" MJ asked, brows furrowing.

Peter grunted unhappily. "I didn't have time to put them in before, because I was gonna be late."

MJ sighed and patted his back in comfort. She wasn't very good at being a supporter. If anything, she was the opposite and suffered alone. Just like Peter and Ned. Maybe that's why they were able to relate.

"You'll be okay. Don't know when. Don't know how. Don't know where, but just know that you have me and Ned," she said softly. After that, she retracted her hand and resumed back to reading a random book she took from the teacher who suggested it.

He had good friends, no doubt. But even with their encouraging comments and their support for the glasses...he still felt upset by it. Peter sighed and went back to burying his nose in the crook of his arms as he wishes his Uncle Ben was here.

He'd know what to do. How to have courage. That everything was going to be okay.

But...it didn't feel okay.

* * *

"Well...at least you're not alone in this, Pete," Ned murmured as they ran an extra 10 laps for not wearing the appropriate clothing to class. This day seemed to have cursed Peter or something.

Peter puffed out his red cheeks as he blew a breath.

He was tired. He wanted to cry, and he just wanted to bury in a small hole and just...rest.

"Faster Parker and Leeds!" Wilson shouted. Peter glanced at Flash who had a sadistic smirk and arms crossed as if he ruled the world. MJ looked at them with disinterest, but Peter could tell that her eyes were telling a different story.

Once they were done with their laps, they collapsed on the floor, panting and breathing heavily.

"Take this as a lesson, students," Wilson said gruffly, pointing at the two tired students.

Flash stifled his laughs and everyone else looked down at them with pity. Peter groaned and covered his eyes with his arm, not wanting to be the center of attention. This is what hell felt...this is it.

Wilson rolled his eyes and blew his whistle, making Peter and Ned wince at the sound.

"Get up, we're going to do more warm-ups."

Peter sat up and winced at his back protesting in return. He got up, much to his body's dismay and helped Ned up afterwards. They walked to their corner, but more trouble was on their way when Flash and his group of friends walked towards the boys with smug looks on their faces and arms crossed to their chest. "Aww, come on Penis Parker, you can't be that pathetic."

"Shut up," Ned growled, holding his arm.

Flash smirked and shrugged. "Who's gonna do anything about it, hmm?"

Peter opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Who was?

"That's what I thought." Flash rolled his eyes and turned away. "Not even able to talk back. Gee, you really are nothing."

He and his group walked away while snickering and Peter looked stricken as if he was impaled right through the chest. It shouldn't have hurt, but damn... _he felt it._

A hand landed on his shoulder and squeezed gently. "Don't listen to him, he's just an ass," Ned murmured.

"Right..." Peter looked away, fists clenched tightly. He'd taken off his band aid wraps after finishing Photography. His hands shown marks of cuts, and were on the mend. But, it did no good after he punctured his cuts again.

Just like his mind did. Puncture after puncture...it never seemed to heal.

* * *

"Good luck, dude. I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?" Ned smiled reassuringly. Peter nodded absentmindedly and sighed. "Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Don't worry, loser," was all MJ said before walking out to her brother's car. Ned gave one last smile before heading out to the subway. Peter sighed and turned around, trudging to Mister Stark's classroom.

When he arrived, he was met with Mister Stark leaning on the teacher's desk, eye brow raised up and arms crossed over his chest. Oh boy.

"I was expecting you, Mister Parker," he said, unfolding his arms and gesturing his hand to an unoccupied student's desk. Peter sat slowly into the chair and shifted uncomfortably as he watched the teacher glare at him with an unreadable expression.

"What do you want?" Peter finally said.

Tony sighed and rubbed his the bridge of his nose. "Why didn't you tell anyone you were being bullied?"

Peter stayed silent.

The teacher looked at him. "That's what teachers are for, y'know?"

"I know," Peter whispered.

"Then why?" Tony pried. "Why didn't you tell anyone? This is serious, Peter! You could've gotten hurt!" He exclaimed

"I'm fine," he snapped. "I was able to handle it."

"Wrong." Tony frowned. "You had a panic attack and lets not to mention you gave yourself some self-inflicting cuts on accident."

Peter remained silent as he bowed his head. He heard some shuffling and when he looked up, Mister Stark's face was close to his own face, as if they were dueling on who can keep their gaze on without blinking.

The more Peter stared, the more he could see added features to Mister Stark. The teacher had some bags under his eyes, along with some wrinkles as well. Tears were on verge to fall as he bit his lip.

Peter looked down again from Tony's gaze and brought a hand to his mouth, trying to cover up his unexpected sobs as it tore his throat.

"I'm sorry," Peter rasped out.

A gentle hand met Peter's shuddering shoulders and he froze. Peter looked up from looking at the ground and saw Tony standing beside him and a hand squeezing reassuringly.

"You didn't do anything, Peter," Tony murmured. He could feel the tension in the boy's shoulders that held boulders of school, stress, bullying and just in general...life. It tore his heart to see any of his students battling their own demons.

"Its okay not to be okay, alright?"

That's when Peter broke. He hunched his trembling shoulders and head hung low as he spoke sobs of 'I'm sorry's' and incoherent sayings that Tony thought he was pouring everything out. It hurt. Not for himself though. Tony was unsure, but he did it anyways as he knelt down in front of the crying student and wrapped his arms around the boy.

He felt Peter freeze, hearing a intake of breath, but eventually, he felt arms around his own body and then a head being buried into his shoulder. Peter resumed back to crying. Tony never really hugged any of his students. Its not like they don't deserve it...it was just odd for him to show any type of affection.

Especially when there are people who make wrong assumptions when its comes to male teachers.

Tony shook his thoughts away and rubbed his hand up and down the boy's back. The man winced when he felt his spine under the apparently, thin layer of skin protecting the student's spine.  _Has the kid been eating correctly?_

Non the less, he continued to do the motion until Peter stopped and backed away from their embrace.

Peter rubbed his puffy, red eyes and took a shuddering breath. "Thanks...for y'know...letting me cry," Peter mumbled.

Tony gave a small smile. "Everyone has to cry sometime. And you were overdue, my dear student."

Peter gave a watery chuckle and Tony mentally fist bumped himself.

"I guess..." Peter hugged himself. "I didn't want anyone to feel like I'm needy or something. Like being a burden," he admitted. Tony felt his heart shatter a bit, because the kid was too  _young_ to feel that.

"You're not a burden, Peter. So many people love you and enjoy your company," Tony stated gently.

"I'm scared..." Peter whispered.

"Of what?" Tony asked, face softening.

"Of change," was all he answered. Tony had to admit that high school is definitely where the students find their own paths of lives. Opinions and changing everything during this time. To determine their own life.

"Things change, kiddo," Tony murmured sadly, but he perked his head up with an encouraging smile. "but it turns out to be the best change of all."

Peter hummed sadly.

"I know you're getting glasses," the teacher confessed, earning a surprise look from the kid. "And I know that's why were in a sour mood today. Not excited, huh?"

"Its change," Peter huffed.

"Its a good change," Tony firmly said. "because it determines who is actually your true friends. Who will accept your change no matter what."

"I'm not prepared," Peter laughed unsteadily.

"Well, you're not the only one to have glasses either." Tony said as he walked over to his teacher's desk and opened up his drawer, revealing his old glasses. He held it up and placed it on his face.

He didn't need them, but it still felt weird to have them on again.

Tony looked at Peter quirked his eye brows up. "Do I look weird?"

Peter shook his head quickly. "No sir!"

"Then, why should you think that you might look weird if a old man like me doesn't look weird in these glasses?" Tony asked, smiling when Peter snorted, but shrugged as an answer.

"See? I look pretty hot if I do say so myself," Tony said proudly.

Peter bit his lip, trying to hide his smile.

"If it makes you feel better," Tony turned around to face his student. "I'll wear mine so you won't be alone."

Peter looked shocked, but he seemed hesitant as he stared at his teacher who had the most understanding, but kind eyes he has ever seen from a teacher.

But before Peter could answer himself, Tony shrugged and wriggled his brows. "I think I'll wear them anyways," he smiled.

The kid laughed and Tony melted in relief. His student was laughing, so it means that he was getting better...right?

When Peter was done from his laughing fits, he looked at the clock and frowned at the time. He got up, jolting Tony suddenly.

"I... um...should get going." Peter pointed at the clock sheepishly.

"Right," Tony slapped his hand onto his head. "Get some rest, kid."

Peter walked to the door, until he turned around to face Mister Stark. His cheeks were still red, and his eyes had yet to return to normal, but a smile formed on his lips and it was enough for Tony to think that Peter felt somewhat better.

"Thanks for cheering me up. My Aunt has glasses and she tries to reassure me, but I guess I needed other people to reassure me as well."

Tony quirked his lips into a soft smile and nodded. "Any time, kid. You know, I'm always available if you need to vent or talk. Whatever kids say these days."

The boy hummed quietly and swiftly left.

Tony put his old glasses down and sighed, sitting down in his teacher's chair. It always confused Tony whenever he sees other children struggling. So many of them. They don't deserve it...no one should.

He had a struggling life. Battling alcohol addiction, and other jazz that tore up his life, but then he got up and succeeded. Tony just hoped that other kids don't have to go through too much pain to succeed.

But, hey...its life.

* * *

After Peter released himself from his overdue crying session, he got better after the days. It improved when Mister Stark gotten his and his friends backpacks back, but couldn't get Flash in too much trouble. Only a few days of detention.

Hopefully, the other teachers took Mister Stark's advice of separating them from Flash and his group.

Peter was getting better, but then it plummeted when his glasses arrived.

Great.

When he placed the newly arrived glasses on, May gushed and took a hold of his cheeks, squeezing them slightly.

"You're so handsome!" She exclaimed, milking in her nephew's accessory.

"Do I look...weird?" He asked, cheeks red and a bit unconscious as he looked himself in the mirror. His wild curls to eyes and nose adorning his glasses.

"Always trust your Aunt, sweety," May said, kissing his cheek.

"I don't know-"

"Shush, you look very nice," she stated firmly.

Peter gave a defeated sigh. "Okay..."

* * *

The next day, Peter entered the school with his hood up and head down. When he arrived in Mister Stark's classroom, he still remained the same posture as he sat down. Mister Stark looked at him with a questionable look, but didn't say anything.

Though, Tony already knew what was going and was waiting for the best execution to pop out the subject.

Luckily, Michelle strolled in and saw Peter.

"Hey, loser," she greeted, getting a grumble from Peter.

MJ raised a brow and lifted the hoodie off his head, peeking as close as possible. Then she saw the shiny new temples, connecting to the frame of the glasses.

"Peter, look up..." MJ murmured sternly. Peter huffed and looked up with an indignant look.

MJ stared and Peter swore that her cheeks turned a bit red, because she looked away and sat down behind him. "You look good, Peter," was all she said.

"Do I?" Peter said annoyingly, crossing his arms to his chest as he pouted a bit.

"I think you look dashing," A voice called after him. Peter turned around and a small smile graced his lips as he saw Mister Stark wearing some glasses as well.

MJ smirked at Peter.

"Wouldn't let you go alone, buddy and besides, we have loads of teens who have glasses as well." Mister Stark smiled at the boy.

Peter formed his smile. Maybe having glasses wouldn't be so bad after all? Yeah, maybe there would be people who think its nerdy, but its for the best anyways. When Flash entered the classroom, Peter started panicking, but to his surprise, Flash completely ignored him and sat down with a loud huff of annoyance.

The student looked at Mister Stark, but all he did was wink at him and resume to looking at today's lesson.

* * *

"Dude," Ned exclaimed. "Some girls are looking at you."

They were in their usual cafeteria table and talked over some stuff. Just normal boring stuff, except that he had glasses and apparently some girls were staring at them. Was it odd? He didn't know.

"Probably looking for someone?" Peter asked.

Ned rolled his eyes and leaned closer to his friend. "They're totally hitting on you. You know that, right?"

"Do I?" Peter mused, tapping his chin while he was thinking and then shook his head as a final answer. "No. I highly doubt it. Maybe they think they think I'm new?"

"Come on, man! Look at them," Ned said, pointing at them. Peter looked behind his shoulder and saw a few girls watching their every move with glossy eyes. Peter quickly turned away and laughed nervously.

"I think you're pretty lucky," Ned complimented, earning a light punch from Peter.

A moment later, MJ slammed her books on the cafeteria table and sat down gracefully, before eyeing them suspiciously. "Did you guys get picked on Flash yet?"

Now that she mentioned Flash, the boys couldn't think of Flash making fun of him today, despite Peter getting new glasses.

"No, but I don't wanna jinx it," Peter joked.

"Me either, but I'd still be on the precaution side," Ned replied. MJ shrugged and opened her book up and started reading. "By the way, two girls are glaring at you like a parrot," she said.

"I know. Ned told me before," Peter sighed.

"You want me to get rid of them?" MJ asked.

"How would you do that-"

Without even letting him finish, MJ leaned forward and kissed his cheek before taking a hold of his hand, intertwining their fingers together and curling it around his fingers. Peter blinked, but he absentmindedly curled around her own fingers.

"Like that," she nonchalantly said before resuming back to reading her book, but never let go of their conjoined fingers. Peter coughed, trying to cover up his heated cheeks. He looked over at Ned who was quietly making fish lips and pointing at them.

When he craned his neck to glance at the girls who were staring at him, Peter saw them staring down in dismay. So maybe they were checking him out...

The boy shrugged and saw Ned mouth him.

_'Told you so.'_

Peter rolled his eyes, but a grin crept onto his lips without thinking. From then on until Lunch was done, MJ and Peter held hands while they did their own things. Meanwhile, Tony Stark smirked from afar, arms crossed to his chest, as he watched his three intelligent students talk amongst themselves.

 _Nothing going on with us,_ Tony scoffed as he thought.  _Yeah, right._

* * *

Tony watched the day go fast.

When school was finished, Tony saw Peter in high spirits. He knew that Peter felt better about the whole endeavor. Sure, it still didn't change the fact that he can't see without them, or people still making fun of him for wearing glasses.

But seeing other teenagers with glasses made Peter realize that it was okay to be different.

Besides, he was a geek at heart and his friends couldn't agree anymore.

A lot of students were surprised that Tony had glasses as well, but it brought out students who have glasses uprise with pride.

The day was over and after explaining other teachers to keep Peter, Ned and MJ away from Flash, they reluctantly agreed and kept an eye on them. All except Wilson, who cared no shits about it.

And that pissed off Tony.

He wasn't exactly on good terms with Wilson, but it wasn't about Wilson or himself. It was about the students safety, making sure that they feel safe. Unfortunately, some teachers think other wise.

Tony started packing up when Principle Morita knocked on the door. Jerking his head up, he gave a small smile and nodded his head for permission to come in.

Principle Morita returned the gesture and walked in.

"What can I do for you, boss?" Tony asked, leaning his hip against the teachers desk. "Am In trouble?"

Morita smiled and shook his head. "No, but I do have news."

"News you say?" Tony mused, rubbing his goatee. "Good or bad?"

"That depends." Morita shrugged and took out a piece of paper from his pocket. "Remember the science convention for the science fair winners?"

Tony nodded, raising his brow. "Yeah, 1st place went to Blakelynn Shelton, 2nd went to Peter Parker and 3rd for Tessa Band," He answered. His heart swelled when he mentioned Peter winning 2nd place for science fair. The kid was glowing when he walked to the stage and took the red ribbon.

"Yes, well, they were supposed to go to a convention. While their parents were supposed to take them, Mrs. Lennox was to take Peter Parker, but she has jury duty that weekend and couldn't come. I don't want Peter to miss this opportunity. So, if he agrees, would you might want to accompany him?" Morita asked.

Tony blinked and thought. Spend time with a kid whom he's seemingly attached?

The man smiled, collecting his excitement. "I'd love too. I'll send the kid an email about it."

"Thank you so much, Tony," Morita replied, relieved.

"No problem, boss. I gotta get going. My fiancee just landed and I plan to give her a nice dinner out," Tony said, resuming back to his packing.

Morita chuckled. "Of course. Tell Pepper I said hi," he said, while treading back to the halls.

* * *

"Hmm, I didn't know that," Peter mumbled, looking at his email.

"What is it, honey?" May peeked over his shoulder as Peter re-read the email from Mister Stark. His hand supported his head, as his elbow held his whole weight. May skimmed through some lines.

"Well, Mrs. Lennox was gonna chaperone me with the science convention next weekend, but I got an email from Mister Stark saying he'll be the one to chaperone me, if he wants me too," Peter answered, shutting his laptop.

"Are you okay with that?" May questioned.

"No, no! Its fine, I was just curious why Mister Stark, a math teacher, volunteered to chaperone me to the science convention."

"Science has math in it," May said as she shrugged.

"Guess so," Peter muttered, returning to open back his laptop.

"Are you gonna agree?" May asked, ruffling the top of Peter's fluffy curls. Peter nodded. "Why not? 'S gonna be an adventure either way," he mused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys. My family's cat has been put down due to his old age about two weeks ago. I already mentioned this on my other fics: It wasn't supposed to be you . He has kidney disease and its only gotten worse and we think its best to put him down to make it painless. Kidney disease isn't painful, but theres a bunch of other problems that concerned us, like not eating at all. He's only skin and bones and he keeps limping. He's struggling to eat with not having all his teeth and it just aches to see him like this. We've done everything to get him to this point, but the time has come.
> 
> I'm so sorry that it took so long to upload, but now I'm back and i'll try to upload every Friday. There are gonna be Friday's where I won't upload, simply because I was busy that week and I had no time to upload or I'm dead and I'm in writer's block. Depends! Thanks for your patience and I'll see you guys soon.
> 
> Please review and let me know how I did :) If you see any mistakes, please let me know as well.
> 
>  
> 
> [Tumblr](https://mercymaeyo.tumblr.com/)  
> 


	7. Science Convention

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter agrees to be accompanied by Mister Stark. Little did they know, they had a lot in common. Also...how is his teacher so damn rich?!
> 
> Thank you for those who reviewed :) your comments means the world to me

It was Friday afternoon when Tony heard a knock on the door. He was packing up for the day, while also trying to check list his trip for tomorrow. Its somewhat unlikely for Tony to accept to chaperone a field trip or something like that, but when he heard about Peter Parker going as well, he couldn't bring himself to say no.

So when Peter emailed him back, saying that it was okay and excited to have his company, Tony made sure that he was prepared as ever. In all honestly, he hasn't felt this excited in a long time.

His student has grown on him. Tony didn't know why, but since meeting Peter, it only made him want to get to know the kid. Whether he'll know more or little, either way, he was gonna enjoy his time with his student at the convention.

Tony jerked his head up and saw an Italian woman with glasses, scrubs and long hair down that was just above her waist. She looked tired, but non the less, greeted the teacher with a small smile.

"Hello, is this Mister Stark's classroom?" She asked.

Tony smiled and nodded. "Yes ma'am," he greeted, stretching his hand outward. "I'm Tony Stark, the math teacher here."

The woman shook his hand and grinned. "Yes, I have heard a lot of things from you," she laughed. Tony raised a brow playfully. "I hope its good?"

She laughed again and shook her head. "Don't worry, you're not going to be mobbed by me. I'm May Parker by the way. Peter Parker's Aunt," she said, earning a surprised noise from the teacher.

Who knew a student's guardian can be this...attractive.

"I see," Tony mused. "very bright kid, indeed." There was warmth that was emitted from the tired woman as she smiled gracefully in return.

"Yes, Peter is very smart," May replied softly, and looked up. "I just wanted to meet you before you guys head over to the convention. Thought it would be the perfect time, considering I was driving home."

"Of course. I wanted to meet you beforehand, but I guess life has a way to keep us busy, huh?" Tony chuckled.

May hummed. "I work as a nurse, so its hard taking care of a teenager and paying the bills," she said, but then shook her head as she collected her thoughts. "Any who! I just wanted to make sure what time I should drop him off at the school so you could pick him up."

"Right, we have to leave pretty early, so maybe about...6:15am?" Tony asked, earning an agreeing nod from May.

"That sounds good. How far is it?"

"About 3 to 4 hours away. After that, we'll grab a bite to eat and return later in the night," he answered.

"Sounds good to me," May responded, and then held out a hand again. "It was nice meeting you, Mister Stark. My kid looks up to you than any other teacher here, and apparently very funny."

Tony took a hold of her hand again and shook firmly, grinning ear to ear. "Why thank you. Peter has done an excellent job with his work and is simply dashing with his new glasses, might I add."

May giggled and nodded. "Well, I'll make sure to say that to him. It was lovely meeting you, Mister Stark."

"Me as well, Miss Parker."

With that, their conversation concluded and they both headed their separate ways. The woman was kind and gentle, a person who held such love for the kid. Tony shook his head in amusement.

God, this kid was infectious.

* * *

His alarm beeped at him loudly, getting the boy to smack it again. It was almost the 5th time he did today and when he finally faced defeat, he turned it off.

Peter groaned and sat up, yawning and stretching his arms, curls bouncing as he did so. He looked at the clock and it blared 6:00am at him. His eyes widened when he realized that today was the science convention and that his Aunt was dropping him off at the school parking lot so Mister Stark could pick him up.

Shooting forward out of bed, he grabbed his clean clothes and rushed out the door with a plain old science T-shirt, a hoodie, some jeans and one sock on his foot. He jumped a bit to get his other sock on and groaned once again.

He forgot his glasses.

Running back to his bedroom, he grabbed his new pair of glasses and put them on, suddenly seeing so much clearer.

The bathroom was sizable and decent. After brushing his teeth and smoothing down his unruly curls, he made it into the kitchen to grab an apple and put on a pair of shoes. Taking a bite of the morsel, his aunt came out of the hallway with a large smile.

"You ready for the science convention?" She asked as she kissed the top of her nephew's head.

Peter hummed as an answer, seeing he had food in his mouth.

May handed him 40 dollars and his eyes widened. He swallowed his food and looked at his Aunt with skepticism. "Aunt May, this way to much," he exclaimed and May brushed him over with a scoff.

"Honey, it'll be alright. Buy some food and get something nice from the convention."

They weren't rich nor poor, but his Aunt did have to do extra shifts to make meet ends. They sometimes would have to skip a meal at times, though it was rare.

"Are you sure?" Peter asked incredulously, hand still holding out the money. May smiled softly and kissed his cheek. "I'm sure."

Peter sat up and gave his Aunt a hug, to which she returned. "Thanks May," he said sincerely.

"No problem, kiddo. Now, we need to get going. Its almost 6:15am and I don't want you to be late," she replied, grabbing the keys. The exited their apartment and got into their car with ease.

"You ready?" May asked, turning on the ignition.

"Yep!" Peter exclaimed happily as May grinned.

* * *

When they arrived at the Midtown parking lot, it was vacant with only a black Audi car in the far corner. Peter looked at it suspiciously.

_This wasn't Mister Stark's car...was it?_

"Is that him?" May asked as she parked. Peter shrugged and saw the black car's window roll down, revealing his math teacher with his signature glasses on. The man grinned and nodded, as if saying that it was him and not a stranger parked in a lonely school parking lot.

"I suppose it is," Peter mumbled, unbuckling himself, giving a quick kiss on his Aunts cheek. "I'll see you later, May!"

"Have fun!" May called out as Peter slammed the passenger door closed. "And make sure to behave!"

Peter turned around and gave her a thumbs up, before continuing to Mister Stark's car.

"Hi, Mister Stark!" Peter chirped, waving at him. Tony smiled at his student and unlocked his car. "Welcome to my car, care to join me?" He asked, while Peter opened the passengers seat door and gracefully slid in.

"Love too," Peter said with a smile, and looked around the interior of the car. "Wow...this car is...fancy..."

Tony snorted and turned on the ignition. "No doubt, but don't worry, my car runs like everyone else's cars," he replied, backing out of the slot. Peter hummed and looked at his seat. Was it...emitting heat?

"Umm, Mister Stark? Is my seat supposed to this warm?" Peter questioned. Mister Stark gave him a quick tug of his lips. "Yeah, seat warmers. Its cold and my old butt isn't very fond of coldness. If you want, you can turn it off or change the temperature," he answered.

"Holy shit," Peter whispered and then his eyes widened, covering his mouth. "I-I mean-"

"Kid," Tony laughed. "You're allowed to cuss. If anything, I cuss more shit than anyone else combined at the school."

Peter chuckled nervously and nodded. "Right, sorry."

"Anyways, did you have breakfast?" Tony asked, turning his left blinkers on to turn.

"Only an apple," Peter replied.

Tony shook his head and clicked his tongue in dismay. "We're gonna be on the road for 3 hours or more, so we might as well get some breakfast on the way, McDonalds sounds good?"

"O-Oh, umm...sure!" Peter said. Now that he mentioned it, an apple wasn't gonna hold him off for the next 9 hours, so he might as well get something filling to eat. Peter shuffled and took out a 20$ bill out and handed it to Mister Stark. "Here, I can pay for myself."

Mister Stark raised a brow at him and shook his head. "My treat, don't worry about it."

"But, Mister Stark-"

"Peter, I want to do this and its fine," Tony interjected softly, making Peter sag down into surprise.

Tony pulled into the the drive-thru, and was then greeted by a cheery, fake voice from the comm. Once Tony ordered his food, which was two egg McMuffins, and a large coffee (It could've been a pot if the employee said they had one.) Then, Peter ordered one egg burrito. Tony furrowed his brows at him and looked at the kid's form and then to the speaker.

"And then can I get 3 egg burritos?" He then looked at Peter again. "Scratch that, get 4," he said, earning a shocked noise from the kid.

"Mister Stark! I-I don't need that much-"

"Kid, I swear, egg burritos are small as hell," Tony said. "Anything to drink?"

"U-um, orange juice?"

"And a orange juice," he repeated. With that, he paid the money and waited for their food to come. Peter turned his gaze towards his teacher with a sheepish expression. "You didn't have to do that."

Tony softened his gaze and smiled. "Its fine, kid. This is a thanks for inviting me to the science convention."

"You're driving me and paid for food for me," Peter pointed out. Tony shrugged. "I needed some good company if I were to go to a convention," was all Tony said, earning a small smile from his student.

"Thanks Mister Stark," Peter said sincerely. Tony waved him off and smiled directly at him. "Don't mention it, kid. But, if you want, you could stop referring me to 'Mister Stark' and call me Tony?"

Peter laughed nervously, scratching the back of his head as a nervous habit. "My Aunt would always tell me to respect my...el...derly." He cringed at the sentence that just spewed out of his mouth.

Tony raised a brow at him, but more in a playful manner. "Are you calling me old?"

Peter stutter out apologies that made Tony chuckle at the teen's nervousness. "Relax, kiddo. I was only joking."

Peter laughed unsteadily and looked away, trying to hide is embarrassment.

He was saved when an employee popped out of the small window and handed them their foods. They ate in relative silence, only hearing horns honking at each other and the engine roaring back to life. It was calm, and serene in a way.

They really didn't know what to say to each other, given the fact that Mister Stark only talked about math and other random crap that was made to make a small talk and then get right back to the subject at hand, but it didn't stop them from trying to make a decent conversation.

"So," Peter started, shifting his feet uncomfortably. "How's your fiancee?"

_Smooth question, Peter._

Tony glanced at him and looked back at the road. "She's doing good. Y'know, planning the wedding and stuff," he replied.

"Cool," Peter said.

There was a pregnant silence. An awkward kind of silence.

Tony sighed and shifted a bit. "Any plans for college?" He asked.

Peter thought for a moment and shrugged. "I wanna do Biophysics, but whatever comes my way, I guess I'll follow it," he said.

"Biophysics is nice. Any colleges you would like to go?" Peter shrugged in reply. To be completely honest, he hasn't really thought of any colleges. It was kind of exhilarating and nerve-wracking to think of growing up and making your own decisions.

"Have you ever heard of MIT?" Tony questioned.

Peter blinked at him. "Massachusetts Institute of Technology?"

"Bingo," Tony chuckled. "I went there for College when I was young."

"Mmm, its a really nice college, but I still don't know whats in store for me. Perhaps, but I'm not betting on it. The tuition is pretty expensive," Peter mumbled.

"Yeah, but it gives great education for those who want to learn about Technology itself," Tony said. Peter nodded and sighed, "Still, I'm not one to get in a fancy college. I just want to have a degree and see what the future has for me and If I have enough, then maybe I could go for my bachelors."

Tony stayed silent for a moment. "What if someone were too...I don't know...pay for you to go to MIT?" He asked.

Peter's eyes widened and shook his head in disbelief. "Wouldn't that be a waste of money, you think?"

Tony's eyes went wide as well.  _Waste of money?_ God, this kid could change the world by how intelligent he was. But a twang of sadness washed over Tony's heart. Did the kid really think that it would be wasted upon such a smart child?

No. Peter was more than intelligent.

"Nah, I think they would make a good decision if they donated for your tuition," Tony said seriously.

"I don't know..." Peter hunched his shoulders. "I don't wanna over compensate my intelligence," he murmured.

Tony gripped the wheel, but Peter didn't notice thankfully.  _Over compensate?_

Peter wasn't over compensating it! He was so smart and Peter thought other wise. Oh, that was for sure, going to change.

Peter shook his head again, as if he was trying to get the doubtful thoughts out of his brain. He looked at Tony and cocked his head towards the man. "What did you major in?"

Tony chuckled at the kid's curiosity. "I have a Master's degree in Electrical engineering," he answered, earning a loud, excited gasp from Peter.

"Really?" That's so cool!" Peter exclaimed. "Did you build stuff or program anything?"

The teacher thought for a moment. "I made a Robot named Dum-E," he responded, not sure how this was going on, but he heard a loud 'Woah' from Peter.

"That's so freaking amazing! I used to go to be in a lego robotics club , but that was the closest to actually building a robot," Peter said, eyes lit up. Tony smiled back at him. "So you enjoy building?"

"Well, I build legos with my best friend, but other than that, I was able to fix an old computer," He said.

"That's impressive, Mister Parker," Tony said.

Peter beamed.

"Perhaps maybe one day, you could be of assistance for me," Tony mused, earning Peter to splutter over his words and eye widened at the thought of that. Tony couldn't hold back his smile at the sight.

"R-really?" Peter eventually asked, a hopeful glance at his teacher. He smiled and shrugged. "Why not? I need another pair of hands around the lab-"

"A lab?!" Peter said out loud, suddenly gasping and eyes seemingly changing into stars. "That's so cool, omigosh!"

Tony chuckled and looked at him. "Then I guess we should plan another Teacher and Student gathering?" He asked. Peter nodded happily and looked outside the window. Trees flew by as they sped up in the highway. Joy lit up in Peter's face as he tried to think of working with his teacher side by side.

This could be a chance of life time to learn from a person who has a Master degree! Not to mention that he got Mister Stark got his Master degree from Electrical engineering! And a lab? He could prove that he is so much capable of just doing regular old science.

Peter yawned and took off his glasses, rubbing his knuckles against his tired eyes. He looked at the digital clock and grimaced. It was only 7:15am and they still had another 2 hours left to go.

He wanted to stay up and talk to Mister Stark more about engineering and science, but Tony caught on with his tired yawns and eye rubbing.

"You should probably rest," Mister Stark said softly.

Peter looked at him. "What about you?" He asked, not wanting for his teacher to be alone while he slept.

Tony grinned in response. "Don't worry, kid. Just take an easy nap and I'll wake ya up if we are here, alright?" Peter hesitated, but conceded as he sank into his passenger seat and brought his legs to his chest as he leaned against the car side, glasses safely tucked into a cup holder.

He looked out the window once more and closed his eyes, heaving a sigh and instantly falling asleep.

From then on, Tony drove on and listened to the small breaths from his student sleeping. He would occasionally peek towards the kid to make sure he was alright and continue to drive forward. At one point, Peter curled himself into a small ball.

Tony didn't know if he was cold or not, but when he stopped at a stoplight, his hand rummaged through the back seats and finally found what he was looking for. He took out a small, but spare blanket from behind and draped it over Peter's form.

Tony smiled slightly when Peter instantly cuddled into it and relaxed once more.

* * *

He was gonna feel bad that he had to wake up the kid. Tony had gotten a special parking ticket, where he could park closely to the fancy auditorium. Besides, who would want to walk 5 or 10 minutes to the destination when you have money?

When Tony parked, he turned off his ignition and sighed, casting a glimpse towards the slumbering kid. He sighed and gently nudged Peter's shoulder. "Hey kiddo, rise and shine," he said cheerfully.

Peter groaned and ducked his head inside the blankets. "F-five mo' minutes," Peter grunted.

Tony chuckled fondly and checked his watch. Yeah...they had another 10 minutes before the whole thing commenced, so he gave Peter his wish.

He watched Peter's form rise up and down, simply from breathing. His curly hair stuck out from the blanket and it was also tempting to run a hand through the fluffy curls... _no, stop, Tony! This is your student, respect his personal space,_ Tony scolded himself.

Tony huffed a sigh and sat back, watching people walk past his car.

Eventually, 5 minutes past and it was time to wake up Peter again. He used his finger to tap the kid's shoulder, earning a shudder from the boy. "Time to wake up, kid. The science convention is eagerly waiting for you," he said, smirking when Peter yawned and sat up, rubbing his eyeballs and taking his glasses from the cup holder and putting them on.

"Morning," Peter yawned again.

Tony smiled and nodded. "Morning, kid. So you're ready for a fun filled science, geek stuff?"

Peter nodded, still waking up from his drowsiness. His curls bounced and Tony was literally about to touch his curls and awe in it, but decided against it.  _Damn satan, trying tempt me,_ Tony let out a verbal huff and Peter stared at him with confusion. "Are you okay?" He asked, innocent, brown doe eyes meeting his old eyes.

Tony nodded sheepishly.

"Oh, okay then. W-well, we should probably-what's on me?" Peter suddenly asked, looking down at his body that was covered in a blanket.

It was time for Peter to sheepishly give back the blanket. Tony took back the blanket and threw it in the back seat. "I draped a blanket over you so you wouldn't get cold," he answered.

Peter's cheeks turned a bright pink hue as he thanked Mister Stark quietly.

Tony smiled at the kid's embarrassment, but let it go as he opened his door.

Tony didn't wear anything fancy like, but it was probably his signature glasses or his expensive car that caught the attention of those who were around him. He heard a faint door closing and some feeble steps that stopped right beside him. Peter was less confident than Mister Stark, that's for sure.

"Come on, kid," Tony said, taking a hold of Peter's shoulder and guiding him towards the large building. People were staring and murmuring to each other while others seemed to go on with their day just fine.

When they entered, they were greeted with thousands of people at certain spaces, boards on display while the makers explained and the others listened intently. Peter gasped, his eyes scanning the place with awe. It was big. It had a lot of scientist that he recognized and looked up to the maximum. Some were congratulating students for their win while the students excitedly asked some questions from their favorite scientists.

This was basically where all the nerds and geeks unite.

"Woah," Peter breathed.

Tony chuckled and nodded. "Indeed my young pupil, a sight to behold," he said. Craning his neck to the kid, he saw that Peter didn't move and was still in a wave of awe and shock. He smiled and placed a gentle hand on Peter's shoulder. "Lets go around and look at some other students boards and then we can go to yours?"

Peter nodded and smiled widely.

This was going to be a memory. No doubt about it.

* * *

Tony noticed that Peter was a attentive listener when it came to science. How Peter's posture changed when a student would explain his or her's build board, complimenting afterwards as well. He was very mature.

When they finished looking at some boards, they headed towards Peter's own science build board. When they got there though, multiple people were looking at it with interest. Peter stopped and took a breath. Tony nudged him encouragingly, allowing for Peter to be in the front.

Peter was nervous as heck, but allowed people to ask questions and he would answer as best as possible. Eventually, it got easier and he would smile, laugh and explain more excitingly.

The last of the people left and Peter breathed in relief. Thank goodness, his voice box was giving out.

A pat on the shoulder got his eyes as he saw Tony with a grin. "Good job, kid. I think you'd be an exceptional scientist," he said. Peter smiled in response.

"Seeing as no one is gushing over you, why don't we head over to the food court and we can meet some of my buddies," Tony said, earning a small nod from Peter. Tony smiled. "Great, what kind of food do you want?"

Peter shrugged. "I kind of don't know what's here, what do you think is best?" he asked curiously.

Tony thought for a moment. "I think I have a perfect choice," he said, smiling.

They walked to where the food was in silence, until Peter asked a question.

"How do you know where to go in this building? It seems like you know this place, like in the back of your head or something."

Tony chuckled, amused at the question. "Good observant, dear student of mine. I used to go here when I was younger," he answered nonchalantly.

"You used to go to this specific convention?" Peter asked in surprise.

Tony hummed. "Yep, I won every science fair when I was younger and would go here afterwards," he said.

"Wow," Peter breathed. "that's really cool. So does that mean you did the same thing I did before?" Tony nodded. "Yep, same thing. It kind of gets boring, though."

Peter laughed. Tony's heart exploded a bit at the tiny laugh.

* * *

When arriving at the food area, Tony dragged him to a specific place. An Italian place to be exact.

"Woah..."

"Your Aunt is Italian, right? Figured you like Italian as well, so," He gestured his hands towards the little Italy place and smiled. "Why not eat at a place that has Italian foods?"

Peter grinned and shrugged. "Why not?"

"Come on, I'll pay for you," he said quickly, walking towards the line of people that were waiting for their own foods. Peter was left gaping again before running towards him and shaking his head. "M-mister Stark, you already paid for my breakfast, the least I could do is pay for my lunch-"

Tony placed a finger over Peter's lips. "Uh bup bup, no. I have plenty of money to pay for you. Don't worry," he assured.

Once Tony removed his fingers, Peter was about to protest again, but again...a calloused hand was gently slapped over his mouth. Peter looked up annoyingly at his teacher, finally conceding. "Let me spoil my student. He deserves it, y'know," Tony smirked.

Peter rolled his eyes and crossed his arms to his chest, but he was more amused that the fact that Mister Stark was being really caring.

After a minute, Tony removed his hand away from his mouth and he sighed contently. "There we go, now! What will you get?"

Peter looked at the menu board and thought hard and long about it. He wanted to cheap, so Mister Stark won't have to pay so much-

"I see that look, buddy," Tony said. "Get something not cheap, alright?"

"Seriously?!" Peter squawked, an incredulous look averted to his teacher.

"Yes, seriously," Tony rolled his eyes.

Peter huffed and stared at the menu board again, his glasses giving off a glare. Honestly, he didn't know what he wanted. All these things he read seemed absolutely delicious. He looked over to Mister Stark, who was tapping his finger on his chin, still picking out his choice of foods.

The line moved inch by and inch and Peter was about to have a panic attack on how fast the line was going and how slow he was thinking.  _There was pizza...yeah pizza sounded good._ Peter thought.  _Or what about Alfredo? Hmmm..._

"I guess I'll get the Alfredo?" Peter asked for approval. Tony smiled widely and nodded. "Excellent choice! I think I'll that too," he said.

Once they got to the cash register, Tony ordered swiftly and eagerly, the employee nodding and elegantly tapping the computer screen. They got their drinks and waited for their orders. In that time, Tony decided to delve into a conversation.

"You know, I used to come here whenever I went to the convention," Tony confessed.

"No wonder you chose this," Peter smiled.

"My mom is also Italian, so I enjoy Italian foods," Tony said, grinning back at Peter.

"Parla Italiano?" Peter asked, his tongue flicking at end. Tony gazed at him, surprised and in excitement. This kid was pretty fluent at this speaking this language. Clearing his throat, Tony spoke back, "Lo, chi ti ha insegnato l'italiano?"

Peter grinned. "Mia Zia," he answered.

Tony chuckled. "Never thought a student of mine knows fluent Italian," he mused.

Peter shrugged. "My Aunt would use it as curse words, that is until I found out what she was saying. After that, she taught me how. Sometimes while we shopped and other times were just random," he responded.

Tony hummed.

Their numbers were called and they sat down in a small table in the corner. Peter and Tony slurped their Alfredo and ate in silence. They watched students, adults, children and others walk around aimlessly.

Once the Alfredo was gone and their liquid gone in their cups with only ice sitting on the bottom, Peter slumped back and gave a small, satisfactory grin. "E 'stato davvero buono."

"Sono felice che ti sia piaciuto così tanto," his teacher replied with a smile.

Peter found a clock and looked at it. Dang. It seemed as if time flew by. He then looked at Mister Stark and gestured his head towards the wide, open doors. "You said you wanted to meet your buddies?"

Tony snapped back to his student and nodded. "Yes, they should be in the back room," he said, getting up and taking his empty trash. Peter did the same and followed his teacher. When they threw out their stuff, Tony craned his neck to Peter and smiled. "And I think they'll enjoy your company as well."

Peter blushed and pushed his glasses back to the bridge of nose and sped up with Mister Stark.

"Grazie per il cibo, a proposito," Peter said quietly, but sincerely. It made Tony stop and look behind his shoulder, and Peter was about to apologize for interrupting his walking when a soft voice stopped in his doubtful thoughts.

"Te lo meriti, ragazzo."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well...whaddya think? Next chapter, we'll see an old friend from Tony's...who is this old friend? Review below and leave a guess! This chapter was originally about 9k words! I had to shorten due to it being so long!
> 
> Thank you all for the condolences and reviews. It warms my heart immensely.
> 
> TRANSLATIONS:  
> "parla Italiano?" - Do you speak Italian?  
> "Lo, chi ti ha insegnato l'italiano?" - I do, who taught you Italian?  
> "Mia Zia" - My Aunt  
> "E 'stato davvero buono" - It was really good  
> "Sono felice che ti sia piaciuto così tanto" - I'm happy that you enjoyed it so much  
> "Grazie per il cibo, a proposito" - Thanks for the food, by the way  
> "Te lo meriti, ragazzo" - You deserve it, kid ( Ragazzo can be either boy or kid)
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> [Tumblr](https://mercymaeyo.tumblr.com/)  
> 


	8. Greeting an Old Friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In amidst of trouble, an old friend helps them out.

"W-wait, this is where the VIP's go!" Peter exclaimed, suddenly stopping in his tracks and backing away, eyes widened with fear.

Tony turned around and gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Don't worry, kid. I know some people who can get us in," he said gently. Peter fixated an incredulous look at his teacher. "Sounds shady," he murmured.

Tony laughed and shook his head. "Kid, its fine. I promise."

Peter was hesitate, but after seeing Tony's encouraging eyes, he walked beside Tony.

They were greeted by a buff, muscular man, dressed in a agent looking suit, waiting by a red velvet stanchion rope. No one was waiting at the line, and the further Peter went closer, the more Peter was drenching in sweat.

_I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die-_

The muscular man stepped right in front of them, his gaze hardening. From what Peter could tell, the man was about 4 inches taller than Mister Stark.

"Passes please," his voice was gruff and it rumbled.

"I believe this will suffice," Tony replied, taking out his wallet and giving him a tiny identification card. It was a sleek, silver card that had something engraved onto it. The guard huffed and unhooked the rope, giving the card back to Mister Stark.

"Right this way," he said.

Peter followed pursuit, but a rough hand grabbed his hood and he winced.  _He was so dead._

"Infants aren't allowed in here," the guard said gravelly.

"Hey!" Mister Stark hissed. "The kid is with me," he seethed, eyes blazing madly at the guard.

"He needs a pass," the guard said roughly, shoving the boy away from the rope. Peter stumbled back, glasses falling off the bridge of his nose and hanging loosely off his face. Peter looked up with fright as he stepped away from the buffed man.

"U-uh, I think I'll wait out here," Peter said feebly, wiping his nose off his sleeve and fixing his glasses.

Tony shook his head and grumbled out some Italian curses while taking his phone out and dialing someone. Peter squinted at the phone. It certainly wasn't any other phone, that's for sure.

Eventually, Tony got off his phone and shoved it in his jean pockets, while Peter tried to looked everywhere but the guard.

"Don't worry, kid. I have someone who can help," Tony called out from the other side of the rope. Peter nodded and gave a weak smile to Mister Stark while Tony was giving a deadly glare at the guard, who seemed unfazed as he crossed his arms to his chest in a stoic manner.

He knew he shouldn't blame him for doing his job, but oh boy, when someone makes comments and shove them away as if they were a plastic bag, hell was going to get loose. Especially those who he  _cares_  about.

Peter started scratching his wrists hard, a nervous habit.

"Stai bene?" Tony asked softly. Peter whipped his head up and nodded silently. "Sì, solo ansioso," Peter responded, his voice filled with distress.

His scratching dug harder into his skin. It left red blotchy marks and some spooled blood. Tony watched him as it all unfolded and he gripped the ropes, leaning as far as he could.

"Smettila di farti male, ragazzo," Tony said gently, wishing he could take the nervousness away from the kid.

Peter gulped and nodded, arms at his side, but having the urge to scratch again.

A full five minute has passed and Tony was getting impatient.

"Damnit! Where is he!" Tony growled, looking at his watch.

Peter looked at him with a curious expression. "Who?"

Before anyone could answer, slow footsteps from afar could be heard.

"Just in time," Tony breathed out in relief.

Peter turned around and-

"Holy fudging shit! Its Bruce Banner!"

* * *

Bruce has gotten a call from Tony saying there was a problem at the entrance and was told to get another pass. Whether his friend pissed off the guard or he wasted himself and forgotten his own pass was beyond him. He just hoped that whatever was happening there, it didn't end like last year.

He was a bit late due to some students asking some questions for him. In all honesty, he didn't mind answering the students questions;all of them had value in them and he was glad to answer them.

Sighing, he headed to the VIP section.

A few minutes of walking silently, he was able to get a small view of the tall guard's head. Then there was another one to what he presumed was Tony's. He fastened his steps, knowing that Tony was pretty impatient.

When he was at full view, he didn't expect a kid with glasses and curly hair to be talking with Tony Stark.

They whipped their heads towards his footsteps and without even breathing for a second, the boy yelled out with a gasp and then cursed and said his name.

Bruce cleared his throat and cocked his head towards Tony, who seemed relieved. "What's all this?"

Tony gestured his hand towards the teenager. "Bruce, Peter. Peter, Bruce."

Bruce averted his eyes to Peter and gave a warm smile. "Well, its very nice to meet you, Peter," he greeted, holding a hand out to him. Peter was spluttering words as he saw this  _genius_ scientist standing in front of him.

Eventually, he snapped out and gingerly shook the scientists hand.

When they retracted, Bruce looked at Mister Stark once again. He had so many questions...

"Did you bring the pass I asked you?" Tony asked, earning a nod from Bruce. The scientist took out the shiny, sleek silver card from his lab coat and held it out to his friend. Tony shook his head and pointed at Peter. "Give him the pass. The guard wouldn't let him in," Tony explained, while giving a huff of annoyance straight towards the muscular guard. However, the guard remained unfazed.

Bruce shrugged and gave it to Peter.

Tony sighed in relief and nodded at his student. "Okay, just give the guard your pass and you should be good," Mister Stark instructed. Peter nodded feebly and walked slowly as ever to the guard who was  _way_ stronger and more intimidating just how close he was standing close to him. But, shoving away his fear, he stood straight with a strong look on his face.

* * *

"Thanks for helping us out, Bruce," Tony said, giving a firm, but friendly shake to his colleague.

"No problem, now I gotta ask...why do you have a kid with you?" Bruce asked, raising a brow.

Tony chuckled lightly. "He's my student."

Bruce blinked and looked over to the kid with a surprised expression, but it held amusement as well. Bruce then looked at Tony and smirked. "I was only gone for a year and somehow you adopted teenage students? Gee, keep my updated," he exclaimed.

Tony rolled his eyes and placed a hand on Peter's shoulder. "Sorry, I was too busy helping my students do boring math," he responded sarcastically and gave a small smile at Peter. "Science is where its at, right kiddo?"

Peter nodded, but there was nervousness that coursing through his body.

Bruce hummed and averted his eyes towards the young man. "So, you like science too?" He asked, smiling when the kid nodded once again. "What do you enjoy studying?"

"Biochemistry," Peter answered immediately.

Bruce blinked in surprise, but a wide grin graced his lips. "Very advanced, I'm sure you're going to change the world, kid."

Peter made a noise and Tony smirked. "Looks like you broke my student," Tony said, earning an eye roll from his colleague. "Besides that," the teacher said, waving the subject off and craned his neck to look at Peter. "How do you know Brucie bear?"

"Tony!" The scientist exasperated, getting for Tony to give him a smug look.

"I read his research paper on gamma radiation and most of other research papers he published! Er...well, all of them to be exact," Peter answered shyly.

"Well, looks like you got your number one fan, huh?" Tony asked, smirking when Bruce had his jaw gaped open. He was pretty impressed for a you child to be actually enjoying his research papers.

"I didn't expect for young children to be reading my papers," Bruce mused out, tapping his chin. Peter shrugged. "Its kind of what helped get into science. But I guess you could say that I got it from my...mother." Peter went suddenly quiet and slumped his posture down.

_My Mother..._

Tony noticed the whole endeavor and furrowed his brows together in worry. This was the first time Peter mentioned his Mother and he has yet to bring up his Uncle and Father. He could tell that talking about his parents was a sore subject.

Bruce seemed to catch onto the mood that Peter was in, because he turned around and rummaged through his stuff, getting his laptop and opening it up. He looked at Peter with a cheery expression. "Hey Peter, I have a research paper that may require assistance. Why don't you be the first one to read and let me know, hm?"

Peter perked right up. "R-really?!"

Bruce waned a smile and nodded.

The teenager looked up to Mister Stark, as if waiting for his permission. Tony smiled and giving an encouraging nudge to Peter.

Immediately, the kid was at Bruce's side with excitement gleaming into his eyes. The scientist handed him the laptop and Peter took it eagerly, brown doe eyes scanning the screen attentively.

Bruce backed away and looked at Tony with a smirk. "Who knew that a student of yours enjoyed my paper," He said.

Tony scoffed. "Students and their technology. Why can't they be like Peter?"

Bruce chuckled and playfully raised a brow. "Don't you do engineering?"

"No, I'm a teacher," Tony retorted, huffing and crossing his arms to his chest. Bruce rolled his eyes in return. "And what do you after you're done teaching?" He asked. Tony remained silent, batting a eye at Bruce.

"I rest my case."

They watched Peter read the research paper, who was awing at every single bits and pieces. "Y'know, I suggested that he could work for me at the lab," Tony spoke out suddenly, earning a shocked noise from Bruce.

"Really?" The scientist asked, eyes widening.

"Yes really...I could use two extra hands," Tony mumbled.

He saw Bruce stare at him with a unreadable expression. "What?" The older man asked.

Bruce shook his head and shrugged. "Its just that...you never really invite people over your lab. Pepper and I are the only ones to actually get in," he said. Tony rolled his eyes. "That's because  _Pepper_ can override my codes..." and then he pointed an accusing finger at Bruce. "And so can you."

"You only got yourself to blame," Bruce laughed.

Tony glared at him, but his eyes wandered to the boy and he softened a bit. Giving a sigh, he ran a calloused hand through his graying hairs. "I don't know, but ever since I met Peter, I just felt a connection with him, y'know?"

Bruce hummed in response and peered over at Tony. "He really is a special kid."

The teacher smiled and nodded. "No doubt about it."

* * *

"Well, how did you like my research paper?" Bruce asked as Peter was giving back his laptop.

Peter quirked his lips up and nodded. "It was good! But, you misplaced some commas..." he trailed off.

Bruce laughed and placed a hand on the kid's shoulder. "Yeah, my friends say that a lot too..."

"I hate to be a party pooper, but we have to get going," Tony sighed, looking at his watch. Peter nodded and went beside his teacher. Mister Stark grinned at him. "Did you enjoy your first time here?"

Peter bobbed his up and down happily, his glasses bouncing along with it. "Definitely!" Peter then turned to Mister Banner. "Thank you for letting me read your research paper, sir!" He chirped.

Bruce smiled warmly and held out a hand to shake with Peters's. "No problem, kiddo."

"Good seeing you, Brucie bear," Tony said smugly and took a hold of Bruce's hand as well.

"Brucie bear?" Peter asked, forgetting the whole name calling before then.

"Oh, college nicknames," Tony said, waving it off.

"Did you have a nickname too?" Peter asked.

Tony quickly turned his gaze to Bruce who had a mischievous facial expression marring his face. His eyes were pleading not to tell, but he raised a brow and looked at Peter. "Well...I did hear that a mailman accidentally called him Mister Stank," he said slowly, allowing for the name to process in the kid's mind.

Peter's lips wobbled, trying to suppress his giggles that were bubbling up his throat. Tony glared at Bruce with irritation, but Bruce was unfazed and gave him an innocent look.

Not able to hold it back anymore, Peter slapped his hand over his mouth and muffled his laughs, looking away from either one of their faces.

"Mister Stank...that's so good," he whispered.

"I have to thank Rhodey for telling me," Bruce chuckled.

"He's so dead..." Tony murmured. He then turned to Peter with a warning look on his face. "You are to never speak of that name, got it?"

Peter smiled, but shrugged in response. Tony didn't whether to feel worry or bonk Bruce upside on the head for telling his student.

Before he could even raise a finger, Bruce's phone rang. "Well...looks like I got saved by the ring!" He exclaimed, digging into his pocket and reading the caller ID. Bruce looked at Peter and smiled again. "Nice meeting you, Peter. I look forward to meeting you again."

Peter's cheeks were dusted in light pink. The scientist he looked up to hoped that they would meet again.  _Holy crap._

He then nodded at Tony who nodded back in response before answering the caller.

"Lets go home, kiddo," Tony said, taking a hold of shoulders by both hands and pushing him gently out of the VIP room.

Peter just kept on smiling while Tony was grumbling under his breath. Like:  _"Cheeky bum"_ or " _I'm so gonna get him."_

It was totally worth it, though.

* * *

"So how was your first experience at the science convention?" Tony asked. Peter smiled while they trudged to Mister Stark's car. Peter nodded with enthusiasm. "I never thought I would meet the Bruce Banner. He's amazing!"

Tony chuckled. "Yep, pretty smart," he said.

"So, you guys used to be colleagues?" Peter questioned.

"Not until after college. We worked at the same lab before I moved out and created my own lab. Dr. Banner went on to studying gamma radiation and also a doctor," he answered.

"Wow!" Peter whispered in awe while Bruce murmured about not being a doctor, but specifically a nuclear physics.

When they arrived at their car and slid into their respective seats, Tony turned on the ignition, music accidentally blasting off the speakers.

Tony cursed and lowered the volume. "Sorry about that kid," he apologized. Peter blinked and then a wide grin spread across his face. "Its by AC/DC! Wait...Carry me Home! That's the song that was playing! I knew it!" Peter exclaimed.

The teacher blinked in astonishment. "You know AC/DC?"

Peter nodded excitingly. "I used to listen to the 80's and the 90's music sometimes. Like Black Sabbath, and-and Metallica!" He explained.

"Holy shit," Tony breathed. "can't believe one of my students actually listens to old time music like me."

Peter laughed and with no consent or hesitation, he turned up the volume again, AC/DC running in the back round. Tony felt no obligation to turn it down as he watched his student bob up his head up and down to the beat of the song.

From then on, they started singing the lyrics, laughing when Tony would pant between singing and then complimenting Peter on how he can keep his breath while singing. It was probably the most funnest things he has ever done.

A little while on the road, Tony glanced at a famous Ice cream shop that he hasn't been to for awhile and they opened until midnight, so he might as well take the chance to get some good dairy. He looked at Peter and smiled. "You wanna get Ice cream? I know this really good place," he said.

Peter contemplated, but nodded enthusiastically. "Sure! I'm always up for some good Ice cream."

"Good, because I'm paying for it," Tony smirked.

Peter sighed annoyingly and propped his knuckle against his cheek. "Course you are," he mumbled, but Tony was able to see Peter's lips tugging upwards slightly. "What's your favorite flavor?" he asked.

Tony shrugged. "Chocolate. Maybe Vanilla with Caramel drenched in it," he replied. "What's yours?"

"Mm, probably rocky road."

Tony hummed in response, allowing the music fill their ears contently.

They parked and Tony went to the bathroom. A perfect timing for Peter to get his own ice cream...just to annoy his teacher because why the hell not? When he ordered them, Tony was already getting out of the male's bathroom and was about to get in line when Peter walked up to him and ordered the Caramel Vanilla cone.

Tony balked and Peter just smiled innocently. "I was getting impatient," was all he said before diving into his own ice cream.

"You little shit," Tony mumbled, earning a playful nudge from Peter. Non the less, they enjoyed their cones, sitting on a bench and looking up at the bright stars that twinkled under them.

"Me and Uncle Ben used to watch the stars while he ate ice cream," Peter confessed quietly, reminiscing how Uncle Ben would take Peter to an Ice cream store, sit on the hood of their car and Ben would point out the constellations while little Peter licked his ice cream and listen to his Uncle attentively.

Tony felt his heart constrict. "I'm sorry, kid," was all he could say.

There was a small laugh emitting from the teenager. "Its not your fault that my Uncle was gone..."

Tony cleared his throat. "How...how did your Uncle die?" Peter snapped his neck towards his teacher, surprised by the question. He then looked down as he pursed his lips and contemplated his next move.

_Shit._

"Shit, I'm sorry kid," Tony said nervously, rubbing the back of his head. "You don't have to tell me-"

"Gun," Peter answered quietly and looked at Tony with glossy eyes. "My Uncle was shot...it happened last year, before I graduated middle school."

Oh, kid..." Tony whispered, having the need to reach out for the poor boy.

"His favorite constellation was Orion," Peter whispered, giving Mister Stark a shaky smile. He sniffed, taking his glasses off before rubbing his moist eyes against knuckles and looking up at the sky. "Always told me the stories behind Orion and how the great Hunter traveled with his pack of hunting dogs. Though, Orion was a boastful man, I learned a lot from that little story. Not to be selfish and to be humble," he murmured.

Tony smiled weakly at Peter and looked up. Such a story to be told and lesson to spread.

His Uncle Ben and Aunt May raised a bright child.

"He would have been proud of ya, kid," Tony said sincerely, placing a gentle hand on the kid's shoulder and squeezing it reassuringly.

_I would be._

Peter let out a watery laugh. "Yeah..."

"What's your favorite constellation?" Tony asked, genuinely intrigued.

Peter thought for a moment and shrugged his shoulders slightly. "My Aunt and Uncle would tell me my personality was like the Pegasus. Goodhearted, gentle, always eager to help," He chuckled for a moment and looked away. "And also a bit naive."

Tony laughed. "I'd say you're stubborn rather naive, kid."

Peter gave him a pointed look in return, only for Tony to laugh out loud again.

"Sorry, sorry..." He apologized, wiping the tears that were leaking out his eyes.

Peter huffed and crossed his arms, but a small smile crossed his face. "I think you'd be Ursa Major, because you're that old," Peter said firmly, a scoff coming from Mister Stark.

"Oh, I see," Tony mumbled, huffing in return and doing the exact same Peter did. Crossing his arms and pouting.

"Haha, very funny Mister Stark." Peter stuck his tongue out.

"Gross kid, keep that inside your mouth...unless its for your girlfriend," Tony replied, wriggling his brows expectantly while Peter cringed in response.

"That's disgusting, Mister Stark!"

Tony smirked. "The joys of young love," he sighed.

* * *

After their Ice cream stop, they continued on driving. There was an occasional small talk and the rest were comfortable silence. It was about 2am when Tony parked into a Apartment complex.

"Well, this your stop," Tony said as he dropped his hands into his lap. Peter smiled and opened his passenger's seat door. He slid out and slammed it afterwards. The window rolled down and Peter peeked in.

"Thanks for driving me there," Peter said, smiling.

Tony grinned. "No problemo, kiddo. I had a fun time." Peter nodded in agreement and turned his heel towards the apartments. Though, he hesitated and spun around again and looked at his teacher.

"Hey, Mister Stark?"

Tony hummed. "Yes, dear student of mine?"

"Thanks for accompanying me as well. I really enjoyed your time with me," he thanked sincerely. Tony froze, feeling his heart thump against his chest. He shook away the warm feeling that was now pouring into his body and gave a nonchalant quirk of his lips up. "I did too, kid. Lets say we make another playdate?" He asked.

Peter rolled his eyes fondly. "I'm not a child, Mister Stark. But yeah...that would be fun."

"I'll make sure we get on with it," Tony chuckled.

Peter beamed and headed out.

"Night, Mister Stark!" Peter called out.

A soft smile graced the old man's lips. "Night, Pete."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Looks like Pete is getting a little bit more cheekier to Tony :) Also! I will be on short hiatus for about 2 to 3 weeks! I'm really sorry, but my mother is gravely ill and me and my bro are in and out with taking care of her while also doing our own jobs. I promise when I come back that it'll be worth the wait!
> 
> Please review and let me know how I did! If you would be so kind as well to point out my mistakes and grammarly errors :)  
> Say hello on [Tumblr!](https://mercymaeyo.tumblr.com/)  
> 


	9. Dinner at the Starks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and May are invited to Tony's house. In which, they meet his Fiancee, Tony's a gosh damn billionaire and he has a sweet looking lab.

"I cannot believe that Mister Stark slipped me $100," Peter mumbled.

"What?!" Ned exclaimed.

"I only paid for his Ice cream!" Peter groaned and pinching the piece of money. "I wasn't expecting for him to pay me back!"

"Y'know, if you were sneaky enough, you'd pay him back too," Ned pointed out unhelpfully. Peter glared at his best friend, unimpressed. "Thanks, Ned. That makes me feel so much better."

"Maybe he's just filthy rich?"

"I don't need his pity money," Peter huffed, indignantly stuffing the $100 bill in his pocket. "Besides, I told him that I'd pay for all my food and stuff I got, but he just brushed me off and paid for all of it."

"You even met Bruce Banner," Ned said.

"That, I can accept," Peter responded.

"Dude, I'm so jealous that you met him, and that you read a research paper!" Ned grunted. Peter laughed, "It was a sight to behold."

"Where's MJ?" Peter asked as he looked around the front of the school. Ned shrugged. "She might be late-"

"Think again, losers."

The boy yelped and stepped backwards, suddenly in the presence of MJ. The girl smirked, tucking a strand of hair behind her hair. "How was your day at the science convention?" She asked nonchalantly.

Peter smiled. "It was so much fun! I was able meet Bruce Banner!"

"Sounds...boring," MJ mumbled.

"Only you would say that," Ned sighed.

* * *

School was like any other average days.

He loved math, mentally cried during Spanish and enjoyed doing Photography. The rest of the classes he forgot to mention were a meh. P.E was a double  _meh._ Luckily, his Asthma was getting worse due to Spring coming in soon.

During which, Wilson was annoyed but called a class for him to wait until P.E was over.

Though, he wasn't expecting that he would spend his P.E time with Mister Stark. Not that he complained or anything, but he noticed how excited he would be every time he was able to spend time with his teacher.

Non the less, he wished a good luck to his friends who kept calling him 'lucky' and went Mister Stark's classroom.

He was expecting for a class going on in there, but no student was there except Mister Stark himself who was looking at a few papers and typing something into the computer. Peter pushed his glasses up his nose again and knocked on the door shyly.

Mister Stark jumped up and looked to see who was here. There was an instant smile forming onto his lips as he sat up and walked across the room to greet his student. "Welcome to Tony da le class," he said.

The boy raised a brow at Mister Stark. "Is that Spanish?"

"Hey! I never said I was speaking any of languages." He exclaimed, and then continued with, "...might be a bit of French in there if you listen to it more clearly," he mumbled.

Peter laughed and walked in fully, propping his backpack on a students desk. "I thought you had a class here?" he asked, looking around. Mister Stark shrugged. "My senior class had a Spanish trip this week, so I'm free," Tony explained.

Peter clicked his tongue and nodded. "That makes sense."

"Does it?" Tony asks.

Peter snorted and shrugged. "I'm bad at Spanish, but I would enjoy a Spanish trip," he replied.

Tony gasped playfully, hand smacking to his chest in false pain. "My own student turning against me! How could you?" Tony asked bitterly, looking away and wiping a fake tear away from his cheek.

The teenager laughed again and shook his head. "Nah, I would rather visit Italy...Or maybe London!"

Tony chuckled. "Its pretty nice there," he said.

"You've been there before?!" Peter squeaked.

"Yup!"

"Jealous," Peter muttered.

Tony scoffed. "It gets boring after a few trips...perhaps I should have brought my buddy that I went with to the science convention," he said, a thoughtful smile gracing his lips.

Peter pursed his lips to conceal his small smile and looked away. It was obvious that Mister Stark enjoyed their trip together and no doubt that Peter did too, but it was odd as well. He felt a connection to Mister Stark...as if he understood what he was going through.

That familial kind of feeling.

Peter shook the thoughts out, suddenly remembering the hundred dollar bill that was somehow tucked inside his pocket before he left. "Speaking of buddy from the science convention," he said, digging the bill out his pocket. "he found money that you dropped."

Peter handed the money back to Tony, who didn't take it and shook his head. "I wanted to repay you," was all he said.

"The ice cream was only two dollars!" Peter exasperated, his hand outstretched and waiting for his teacher to take back the money. "Besides, I should be the one to repay you, y'know. The gas, the food and then getting that VIP."

Tony shook his head again and grinned at his student. "You don't have to repay me at all, kid. You deserve it as much as the rest of class do," he said sincerely. Peter hesitated and stumbled back.  _Did his teacher just exploit that He was his favorite student._

Peter was too shocked to protest as he watched Mister Stark stroll to his teacher's desk and sit down before typing away again. He sighed in defeat and looked at his with a raised brow. "I'm not gonna be able to get out of this, am I?"

Tony smirked. "Not a chance, buddy."

"Fine," Peter groaned. It wasn't like that he hated it, he just felt it was too generous after all that. He didn't want to be selfish and take someone's money just because he deserved it.

Stuffing the money in his pocket once again, he sat down in usual student chair and brought out a physics book.

* * *

It was probably 25 minutes since they said a word to each other. Peter could hear the clacking on Mister Stark's keyboard and mouse clicking every so often, while Tony was able to hear his student flip a page with a quick  _fwip!_

It wasn't like he didn't enjoy Peter's company, it was the matter of inviting the kid to his house, introduce his soon to be wife and show him the lab, but not know how to ask him.

Was it odd to ask a student of his to invite him over his house? Was it weird? Did it sound...awkward?

Tony's Fiancee has been nagging about this boy that had changed her Fiance's switch around about having kids. She was even the one to suggest that they invite them over to dinner at some point.

Which was literally after Tony got home from dropping off Peter to his apartment. Cutting it short, Tony would blabber on how this specific student was absolutely intelligent and took pride in him sometimes.

Pepper would joke to him that he has a secret child, but he would just indignantly deny it...and tease, but whatever!

A loud ring interrupted Tony's thoughts as he averted his eyes towards the noise. He realized that it was Peter's phone.

Peter sheepishly took out his phone and looked over to Mister Stark, mouthing,  _I'm sorry._  Tony just smiled and nodded in permission to answer before turning his eyes towards his screen.

Peter cleared his throat and answered.

 _"Hey, Aunt May,"_ he greeted.

 _"Hey sweetie! Listen, I accidentally burnt the meatloaf again,"_ she started. Peter smirked inwardly. " _And that's new?"_

 _"Hey! I tried at least,"_ May laughed and Peter laughed in return.

 _"Anyways, we might as well get takeout or something like that, what are you in for?"_ She asked. Peter thought for a moment and shrugged.  _"Mmm, I kind of don't know, what do you want for dinner?"_

There was a loud cough from behind him. Craning his neck with his phone still pressed against his ear with glasses smushed between his ear and phone, he saw his teacher looking at him.

"Why don't you have dinner with me and my Fiancee?" He suggested. Peter had to keep his shock to himself as he contemplated before turning to his phone.

 _"Mister Stark just invited us over his house for dinner,"_ Peter said, his voice sounding like a robot. He was taken back with his teacher just nonchalantly suggesting him and his Aunt to come over his house.

 _"The math teacher?"_ She asked.

Peter hummed through the call. There was silence at the end and then a,  _"Why not! I'd love to get to know Mister Stark."_

The boy looked at Tony and nodded as a confirmation.

Tony smiled. "I'll give you our address right after school, yeah?"

"Yeah, that would be helpful," Peter said, watching the teacher write down the address on a piece of paper. "When should we come?" he asked, outstretching his hand to reach for the paper as Tony handed him it.

Tony pondered for a moment and shrugged. "Probably around 6 or so."

"Well," Peter started, perking his head up a bit to show enthusiasm. "I guess I'll see you soon!"

As if on cue, the class bell rang.

"Yeah, kiddo. I'll see you soon," Tony laughed. He waved his student a goodbye, watching him disappear in the overcrowded halls. Tony sighed and dug through his phone, tapping a specific Caller ID that read:  _Soon to be Mrs. Stark_

He put on a call and held it to his ear, anticipating for her to answer.

 _"Hello?"_ It said.

 _"Hey, Pep,"_ Tony greeted warmly.

 _"Tony, aren't you supposed to be working right now?"_ She asked, and Tony knew that Pepper was raising a brow at him. He chuckled lightly.  _"Some classes are off due to the Trip from Spanish class. Besides that though, we have two new guests coming over tonight."_

The end of the call was silent for a fresh moment.  _"New guests?"_

 _"Yep!"_ Tony popped the 'p'

_"May I ask who?"_

_"Remember that kid who I've been talking about? The one I brought to the science convention?"_ Tony asked, playing with the hem of his shirt as he sat down in his teacher's chair with a cheeky grin on his face.

There was a hum of confirmation from her.

 _"Well... turns out that the kid was talking to his Aunt about dinner and I might have invited them over,"_ he explained, laughing a bit nervously now.

 _"...Well that was unexpected,"_ Pepper said at the end of link. Tony had to laugh at his Fiancee's blunt comment.

 _"Believe me, Pep, I surprised myself too,"_ Tony sighed.

 _"Well, I'm lucky to see a student that wrapped around my Fiance's 'cold' heart,"_ Pepper replied, a slight teasing tone in her voice. Tony scoffed and shook his head in denial.  _"He's just gonna eat dinner with us. What's the worse that could happen?"_

* * *

Apparently, Tony jinxed himself way before he invited Peter. More like jinxed himself when he met his intelligent student, Peter. He wasn't out and about on getting attached to a kid, but in his defense...the kid had such adorable puppy eyes.

Now, he was walking back and forth in front of his door, anticipating for the doorbell to ring at any second. God, he could not believe he was doing this. Tony Stark was never nervous!

There was a familiar chuckle from behind him as he braked his tracks and looked at his soon-to-be wife with a questionable look. "What?"

She smiled and kissed his cheek before dusting something off his shirt. "Just watching you pace around is a sight to see," Pepper mused. Tony rolled his eyes, but a fond quirk tugged his lips. He placed his hands on her lips, bringing her closer to his face as he intertwined his lips with hers with a passionate kiss.

"Then you should take a picture while you still can," he said in between their kisses.

Pepper laughed, breaking off their kiss. She thumbed Tony's cheek gently, grinning and eyes gleaming with affection. "I already did when we had out first date," was what she responded. "Its just going to be interesting to meet your student that made you pace around nervously."

Before Tony could reply with a comment, the doorbell rang with a cheery chime sound echoing through the empty hallways. Their house wasn't small, nor big either. This was one of their houses. The others were larger than this, but they rather enjoyed this cozy home.

Tony and Pepper let go of each other quickly and composed themselves before Tony cleared his throat and opened the door for their guests. They were met with a familiar dorky kid with baby brown eyes that adorned glasses. Nerdy T-shirt with jeans were his basic clothes. His curls bounced everywhere due to the gentle wind flying through his hair.

Along with the kid, was a middle-aged woman, about the same age of Pepper who wore a light green tank top with blue jeans. Her hair was down that went down to her waist as her glasses reflected the sun.

In all honesty, Pepper would have thought that this kid was really adorable. It was no wonder that Tony got attached to him.

Speaking of which, Tony smiled widely and held out a hand to the woman. "It is nice meeting you again, Miss Parker," He greeted warmly. The woman returned the favor of shaking hands with the teacher and smiled back. "You can call me May, Mister Stark."

He smiled even more. "Then please call me Tony." The man then turned his gaze towards the scrawny kid. "Hey, kiddo!"

"Hi Mister Stark!" Peter chirped at him with a small wave.

Tony chuckled and gestured his hand towards his wife. "Peter, May, this is my Fiancee, Pepper Potts."

Peter looked at her with awe, eyes widened and mouth open. He craned his neck towards his teacher. "She's really pretty."

That's when Pepper laughed softly. "Thank you, sweetheart. It is so lovely to meeting you two," she said with a smile, hand held out to shake. Peter took it gently and shook a bit before retracting it.

May and Pepper returned the gesture.

Tony clapped his hands together. "Okay! Now that we got the introductions out of the way, why don't we give you the tour to our cozy home," he said, placing a hand on the teens shoulder as he guided him in first while the women were now in a deep conversation.

It was like they were friends since forever.

"I still need to make preparations for dinner," Pepper said with a grin. "But, by all means, make yourself comfortable."

"Is there anything I can help you in the kitchen?" May asked as she hung her purse at the door. Pepper nodded and guided the woman to the kitchen. May stopped in her tracks and turned around to face Peter. "You behave, Pete, alright?"

Peter nodded happily. "Yes, ma'am!"

"That's my boy," May said, smiling and following after Pepper, who was already talking to her with hush excitement.

It would seem like they would get along very well.

The boys were alone at that moment. So it was the perfect opportunity to show Peter his lab and stuff.

"Okay, kid. Now that the women are doing their girly stuff, why don't we head down to the lab I mentioned before, hmm?" Tony couldn't hold back a smile when he saw Peter widen his eyes and nod slowly.

"Come on now, shall we head out?"

Tony started walking down the hallways, followed by Peter who was looking around the halls. It was pretty barren, but they did have some archetypes that were hung up on the walls.

They were greeted by a door;an old regular wooden door.

Peter was expecting it to be a basement, and that's where he thought the lab was, but to his surprise, a finger scanner popped out and shifted in front. Tony clicked his tongue and placed his thumb, blue lights scanning his calloused thumb.

It dinged and then the door opened, along with a unfamiliar voice that entered the halls. "Welcome back, sir," it said with a Scottish, but robotical voice. Peter ducked his head on instinct, eyes clenched and hands over his head.

Though, nothing happened.

Peter opened his eyes and saw that nothing was attacking him or anything. He looked up to see Mister Stark smirking at him.

"Peter, meet my AI, JARVIS," Tony said, eyes looking at the ceiling.

"Hello, Peter Parker," JARVIS greeted.

"Woah," Peter said in awe.

Please," Tony scoffed, waving a hand in dismissal. "You haven't seen the rest of the lab."

The old looking door suddenly slid into a metal looking door and revealed its true findings. Peter didn't even realize that he was being gently pushed through the door as he stared at it in awe.

Blinking again, he noticed that he was  _literally_ in the lab now. His eyes wandered through every nooks and cranny. So many machines, computer and tech stuff were everywhere. Unfinished machinery were displayed and so  _many_ stuff.

It was like a kid's candy store for Peter.

"Holy friggin..." Peter breathed.

"Crap," Tony finished with a soft whisper.

Peter nodded and walked a bit forward, looking everywhere. The floors, walls and tables were made out of some type of special metal. Holograms of projectile mechanization and blue prints just lying on a grand table.

"This is amazing, Mister Stark!" Peter exclaimed, eyes filled with excitement.

Tony chuckled enthusiastically. "I'm glad you think so!"

"I never expected to be actually in here and looking at a...real lab," Peter said quietly. He looked up to see shelves with awards and other certificates being proudly displayed. "Are those your certificates and awards?" He asked, pointing at them.

Tony nodded and smiled. "Yep! But that's not really important," he said, waving a hand at them. "How about I show you the inventions I'm making right now?"

Peter perked up and nodded in agreement. "I'd love too!"

* * *

So, Tony is like your child, huh?" May asked, smiling a bit. Turns out, they had more things in common than they thought. Especially when it came to Tony and Peter.

Pepper rolled her eyes, but there was a quick tug of her lips. "Yeah, he's always cooped up in that lab of his. The only time he actually gets out is when I'm home or he has to go to school," she explained.

"Yeah, I'm going through that with Peter," May said, laughing. "Always being cooped up in his bedroom and doing his 'exciting' homework."

"I would say that's a good thing," Pepper smiled.

May laughed again and shook her head. "Its amazing, but I think he tends to forget that sleep is a thing as well."

"You and me both," the strawberry haired woman groaned out. "Tony is always the one to forget to sleep."

"Its always that," May sighed.

"Does your child geek about science?" Pepper questioned.

May looked at her with an incredulous look. "My kid is literally being shown in a  _lab._ I bet he's in his own candyland right now."

Pepper chuckled and wiped something on her apron before getting her over mittens to take out the lasagna out. "I shouldn't have asked," she joked.

May grinned, but a thought came to mind. "Hey, mind if I ask...why does Tony work at a school if he is already a billionaire?" She asked genuinely. It wasn't a bad question to be fair, but it piqued interest for May.

Pepper was silent for a moment, intently taking out the pan before she swiped the mittens off her hands and threw them on the counter. She then shrugged in response. "Tony is a bit unpredictable when it comes to that. Either that, or he just gets bored easily. I never expected for Tony to come home and say that he rather enjoyed teaching students."

May smiled softly at that.

"And he keeps mentioning a certain student that he ironically got attached a bit," Pepper mused, gesturing her head towards her with a broad smile and brow raised.

May gave a shrug and gave a smirk. "What can I say? My kid is infectious when it comes to that, but I admit that Peter also mentions Tony after school. Always saying that he makes funny jokes, very fair and also understanding."

Pepper quirked her lips up gently. "I see. My husband has a way of empathy. Although, he may think otherwise, I have a feeling that he feels a connection between Peter and him."

"I can see why," May said quietly, a small tug of her lips quirking up.

There was comfortable silence for a minute or so, until a voice popped in.

"Miss Potts, it seems that Mister Parker and Sir are going with the explosions again..." JARVIS said with a bit of amusement in his voice, despite being a robot. Pepper groaned and rubbed her fingers between the bridges of her nose. "Of course he did..."

"Who was that?" May asked worriedly, looking around the unsuspected voice.

"That's JARVIS. Tony's personal AI. And it would seem that out children are making mayhem in the lab," Pepper sighed.

"Oh... what did they do?" May asked, composing herself.

"It would seem that Sir has been showing off machines to Peter and decided to test one out," JARVIS explained.

"I am not surprised," Pepper replied monotonously, as if this was normal every day.

"Should I be concerned?" May teased.

Pepper shook her head and sighed, exasperated. "No, if anything, he probably used the testing chamber to show him. No harm done."

"Isn't that...dangerous?"

"Mister Stark has made his lab proofed for any explosions. As well as a testing chamber to test out his machinery and other technology that could potentially explode," JARVIS responded for her.

"That's good, right?"

Pepper laughed out loud and nodded. "Don't worry. Tony won't let harm go anywhere near the kid."

May blew out a breath of relief.

"JARVIS, can you tell them that dinner is ready?" Pepper asked, bringing the got lasagna over to the dinner table, to which, the table was pretty freaking large.

"They are on there way," JARVIS informed.

Pepper looked over to May with an amused look. "Shall we greet them?"

May grinned. "Of course."

* * *

"That was amazing, Mister Stark!" Peter exclaimed, cleaning off his glasses that held speckles of dust and such. "I wasn't expecting for that kind of formula could make such a big explosion!"

"That's why we test stuff," Mister Stark said, smiling as they headed out the lab.

They were met with two woman standing in front of them with arms crosses and stern, raised brows pointing at them.

"Tony..." Pepper said.

Immediately, Tony raised his hands in surrender and chuckled nervously. "I swear, Pep, no kids were harmed in the making."

May cocked her head towards her nephew. Peter was the one to raise his hands in surrender as well. "Nothing!"

May hummed and craned her neck to Pepper. "What do you say?"

Pepper shrugged. "No scorch burns were on them. So...we'll let them go," she answered.

Peter and Tony blew out a breath of relief.

"Dinner's ready, by the way. Why don't we head down, hmm?"

The boys followed Pepper and May like little children through the halls and into the diner's room, where lasagna, some side dishes and drinks were displayed on the table. Everything smelled absolutely delicious.

Peter turned to Pepper with a waned smile. "It smells really good, Mrs. Stark!"

Pepper smiled warmly, while Tony tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Technically, its still Pepper Potts, but that does ring a nice bell to it, doesn't it?" He mused, earning a pointed glare from Pepper.

"Right," Tony murmured, absentmindedly scooting away from his Fiancee's death glare. "Why don't we sit down and enjoy the food my Fiancee so graciously made, along with the help of your lovely Aunt, hmm?"

Peter nodded enthusiastically and waited for Tony and Pepper to find their preferred seats before he and May found a seat next to each other.

It was a comfy diner's table. Not cramped, but close enough in range to hear other people talking. It was sort of nice. Pepper started handing out plates full of Lasagna and the sides that were still steaming from the heat.

When everything was settled, Peter wondered what the conversations were gonna be like now that they were all together.

Good or bad, it was just going to be interesting...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shizznuggets, I am so sorry for being gone for almost a month, like i have some hell i'm going through right now and writing is kind of impossible when life is slowly dragging me down into the abyss. I don't know when i'll upload again, hopefully in the next month.
> 
> As always, your reviews are most appreciated and helps me write better to please you guys! Thanks and i'll see you soon!
> 
> Say hello on [Tumblr!](https://mercymaeyo.tumblr.com/)  
> 


	10. Conversations led to Another

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Conversations are always interesting.

The first few moments of just being at the table was enough for Peter to squirm in his seat. Usually, it was just him and his Aunt, but this time it was his teacher and his Fiancee! If that didn't make him any nervous, then going to his Teacher's house and as well looking at his lab was nerve-wracking enough.

Though, he did get excited and forget his anxiety was ever there. Now it just hit him full force.

The lasagna smelled really, really good in Peter's sense of smell. Something he wasn't used to, considering that Aunt May wasn't the best of cookers, but she tries at least.

"Dig in!" Pepper quipped in.

Peter slowly picked up his utensils and cut a piece of Lasagna, watching the steam escape the hot morsel. He glanced at Mister Stark, who was always stuffing a large amount of lasagna in his mouth.

Warily, he opened his mouth and shoved it in. He was met with surprise when it just melted in his mouth.

Swallowing the rest, he turned to Pepper. "This is really good!"

Pepper grinned broadly. "Thank you, I used Tony's mother's recipe," she said, turning her gaze towards Tony. "He loves it when I make it."

Tony puffed his chest proudly. "Mom always made wholesome Italian food!"

"I love Italian food, though maybe because I'm Italian as well," May laughed. Peter tugged his lips upwards. "I was talking to Mister Stark about that when we were at the Science convention," he piped in.

The teacher nodded and grinned. "Your nephew is a full-fledged Italian speaker," he replied and shook his head. "Never in a million years would I find a student of mine to know Italian."

"It was my way of cursing without him knowing," May chuckled. "but he later found out and I couldn't use them anymore. Though, it was a perfect opportunity to help him learn Italian, and it went well."

"Lets not forget the times when you tried cursing in Latin," Peter pointed out.

May shot her nephew a look, earning a snort from Mister Stark. "How was I supposed to know that you supposedly decided to learn Latin and never tell me?"

"You never told me that you know Latin either," Peter sassed back.

May was silent. "...Fair point."

Pepper and Tony laughed in return. Peter and May were one in a kind, that's for sure.

"So Peter," Pepper started, placing her fork down to wipe her mouth with a napkin. "How long have you've been interested in science?"

Peter thought for a moment, absentmindedly putting his fork down and interlacing his fingers together out of habit. "Since I was little, I guess," he answered, but it more like a question as well.

"You were always fascinated by Uncle Ben's work, like Astronomy and stuff," May suggested.

Peter shrugged and nodded. "Yeah, Uncle Ben was really the one to put Science as a impact on my life. But, I actually love doing Biophysics!"

Pepper smiled warmly. "Sounds fun!"

"He's also good at chemistry too," his Aunt said. Peter sheepishly nodded. "Yeah...that too..."

"Tony did chemistry in out kitchen once," Pepper said, giving a small glare at her Fiance and looked at Peter. "I would have preferred that he stuck to mechanics."

"At least the concoction was cleaned off the wall!" Tony pouted.

"We had to repaint the kitchen walls," Pepper replied dryly. Tony grumbled and continued to eat his lasagna while Peter snickered behind his hand.

"At least it looks good in there," May said lightly.

Pepper nodded and cleared her throat and averted her head towards the teen, cocking her head. "How did you enjoy the science convention with Tony?" She asked. Peter cracked a smile unexpectedly, shoving his glasses to fit on the bridge of nose before nodding. "It was really fun! I met Bruce Banner and Mister Stark showed me his favorite food place when he was younger!" he chirped.

Tony waned a smile. "It was Italian as well, seems like you're the only one to like Italian foods," he said to May.

May smirked. "It runs in the family."

Tony chuckled and shook his head. "I have no doubt."

The dinner table was silent for a mere minute before May cleared her throat and looked at Tony with a inquisitive expression. "What did you do before you took a teacher's job at Midtown?"

"I run a personal industry with my lovely Fiancee," Tony replied, smiling.

May's eyes widened. "Really? Why leave?"

Peter craned his neck towards Mister Stark with a look of interest. His teacher owned an industry? Why would he leave his industry and become a math teacher at Midtown Tech? Granted, he was glad that Mister Stark was his teacher, but it seemed like his teacher chose a job that paid less than working at an industry.

"I got bored. Since then, my Fiancee is the CEO of it while i'm gone, which is often," Tony said.

"What he means," Pepper said, giving her Fiance a pointed look and then at the Parkers. "is that we want to incorporate devices that help the schools be more...safer. For teachers and students."

Peter made a noise. "Is that why you were outside when I first actually talked to you?" Peter asked.

"Yep," Tony said, popping the 'p'. "I needed to get a good look at the structure of the school. Besides that, I also wanted to get a full feel on teachers with their students. There were some pros and cons, but overall, they need more pay."

"How so?" May questioned, a small smile gracing her lips.

Tony huffed and looked up. "First, the food is terrible," he started. "second, there are some teachers that need to be fired. Third, some teachers don't understand the breaking point of a student, y'know? I see children walk down those sad school halls with death in their eyes." He shook his head and sighed. "Why can't some teachers open their eyes sometimes?"

May hummed. "Its no wonder Peter has a liking to you," she said, lowering her head. "His teachers didn't understand his anxiety or panic attacks when they happen. They just passed it off as a habit to get away from school work. But you took an understanding for him and many students that have problems in their lives."

Peter smiled and nodded at his teacher. It was true. Ever since he was a little child, no one would take him serious for his anxiety and panic attacks. Only one teacher did, and that was Mister Stark. He was kind, funny and most of all: understanding.

It's like Tony knows what teenagers go through today.

Given the fact that Tony allows some students to listen to calming music, gives them gift cards to Starbucks, give good rewards and other stuff. It really warmed Peter's heart seeing a teacher give a damn about their students.

God knows that other schools need a teacher just like him.

A soft smile formed on his teacher's lip, akin to fondness and appreciation.

"Thanks, May and Peter, means a lot to see my work making a difference in that school. Some students deserve it, like you kid." There was sincerity in Tony's voice. One that always made Peter smile.

* * *

The conversation at dinner table continued on in the family room, where they started playing apples to apples. In which, the theme was:  _Crazy._ Fortunately, Peter had the perfect card for Tony, who was the one to pick out the card that fits most of the synonym.

"Oh my God," Tony said, choking back a laugh, looking at the card and reading it. He then flipped the card and tapped it. "I choose this, holy crap."

"Yes!" Peter pumped his fist in the air in victory. The women looked at the card and their were whispers of, 'Oh my Gosh's' emitting from their mouths.

"Peter!" May exclaimed. "I can't believe you chose  _cocaine_ for the card. Peter grinned and shrugged, taking the card. "Gotta win somehow. Besides, cocaine does make you do it, so..."

May slapped a hand over her head. "God, why do you do this," she mumbled.

"Because I want to win," Peter replied back.

"Its not like he's actually doing  _that,"_  Pepper laughed.

May froze and looked at her nephew with a raised brow. "He better not."

"I'm not, I swear!" Peter exclaimed, putting his hands up.

"Nah, Peter is too good for that," Tony said, grinning. Peter choked, his cheeks burning a bit.

"Anyhow," Tony murmured, putting his deck of cards on the ground. "Why don't we head down into the lab while the women talk about girly stuff, yeah?"

Pepper gaped at her Fiance. "We haven't announced the winner yet!"

Tony coughed and tilted his head towards Peter's winning cards and saw 10 cards. She blinked and looked at May with confusion. "Since when did he win?" May shrugged and raised a brow. "And how long have we've been losing?"

Peter chuckled nervously. "Well...I won 3 rounds before," he replied sheepishly.

May rolled her eyes and shooed the boys away. "Go have fun. We'll be leaving in about an hour. And Peter... _please_  don't get hurt."

Peter saluted her with a lopsided grin and followed after Tony, who was already at the door. When they entered together, Tony slung an arm around the boy and grinned widely at him. "Y'know, I could use your help for something," he said.

Peter cocked his head a bit and blinked. "Like what?"

The man guided him to something that was covered in a white sheet. Tony quickly flew it off and grinned at the sight. Peter merely just widened his brown eyes and stared at it in awe.

A suit. Some kind of suit.

"What the-"

"Its a metal suit," Tony interrupted him with a sly smile. "I've been building it since the beginning of December. Looks cool, eh?"

"Cool?" Peter said in shock, a wide smile gracing his lips. "Its friggin' amazing!" he exclaimed.

The armor color was red and gold as it glimmered in the dim light. "What does it do?" Peter asked.

"Regular stuff. Its mostly a prototype, but it has some tricks up its sleeve. Still a work in progress," Tony said, patting the metal suit.

"Is it for a specific thing?" Peter asked.

Tony shrugged and thought. "Not yet, no. But, I have a feeling it will help people in need."

"Like superheros?!" Peter's eyes widened with excitement.

Tony shrugged, but a sly smile graced upon his lips. "Eh, why not?"

"That's amazing!" Peter exclaimed, eyes shining a billion stars. Tony then arched an eyebrow, eyes thinking while watching the teen become all excited for the suit. "Say...why don't you come help me build it?"

Peter's eyes bulged out. "What?" he squeaked, air suddenly getting thinner and thinner. The teacher smirked. "A new Intern wouldn't be so bad, now would it?" he mused. The boy stuttered out incoherent words, but Tony knew that Peter was just shocked.

"Come on kid, what do you say?" Tony asked, grinning.

Peter stopped stuttering and for a moment, he thought. Given the excited expression Peter have Mister Stark, Tony knew far too well that the kid would've said yes.

"I'd love too!"

Tony smiled. "Well, my dear student and intern, every Friday, you'll be spending time with your dear old teacher," he said.

"Does Aunt May know?" Peter questioned, biting his lip. Damn, he forgot to ask for May's permission. Though, he was puzzled when Tony snorted and crossed his arms to his chest. "Actually, May suggested it," he answered.

Peter dropped his jaw, mouth gaped open and the most shocked facial expression Tony has ever seen. He couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Oh, kid," he rasped out, wiping a single tear from his eye. "You have the best expression."

"M-May asked you t-to-"

"Technically, I suggested it and then May said yes," Tony explained, a bit sheepishly. Peter looked awestruck, as if he was just hit by a shooting star. granting his wish while also giving him shock at the same time.

"Y-you really want me to work with you?" Peter whispered. A hand was placed on his lanky shoulder, suddenly meeting Mister Stark's kind and genuine eyes and that soft smile he would give to students who were beaten down and sad. It always made them feel better, yet they didn't know why.

"You're a intelligent kid, Peter. I wouldn't have asked you to come meet my fiancee or go down to my lab. Or even go to the science fair convention if I didn't know you're a special kid. A smart, kind student that I rarely see often," he said gently.

Peter was surprised, but it hit his heart in a good way. A teacher finally seeing his special talents...who actually notices him. He mustered the strength to wrap his arms around Tony and hug him tightly.

"Thank you, Mister Stark," Peter whispered.

Tony was taken away, but he allowed his arms to wrap around the student, encasing him in what looked like a bear hug. "No," Tony said quietly. "Thank you," was his reply and Peter couldn't help but hug him tighter. To which he returned the favor.

Tony didn't know why. He really didn't. But something inside him made his heart go out to the kid. Peter was really bringing out the most out of himself, and he didn't understand why. Didn't his father always say that Stark Men are cold as iron. They break precious gems. And Peter was a real gem.

Peter shone, even when he felt dull.

A type of familial love poured out of Tony's heart and body for Peter. It was a strange sensation, but Tony welcomed it with open arms. Of course, he felt the small tugs of familial love for other students, but this was different.

It like a waterfall. An ocean, perhaps.

When Tony saw Peter brighten, it made him feel so much better to see the kid smile. He was infectious and a dorky kid. Who wouldn't want to call Peter as their own? Tony has been known to shut people out of his life. But, he invited Peter into his life, and he wasn't going to let Peter walk away just because he was selfish enough to shut the kid out.

Tony knew that this kid was meant to be in his life.

And Peter knew that something about this teacher was meant to play as a father figure. They just didn't know how long they would realize it.

Little pieces were brought into place. One by one. And day by day, they start to realize even more. How the mind realizes and how the body feels.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is a small chapter! I had such a hard time making conversations that wouldn't spoil the later chapters :( Anywho, I've had a busy summer and had some hard times. Your reviews and comments are a joy to my heart and I appreciate each and everyone of your guy's comments. Thank you so much! Hopefully the next chapter won't be too long to upload :)


	11. Gym Problems

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Today's the day! Where Peter will be going to work in Mister Stark's lab! Nothing could go wrong, nothing at all! ...right?

The weekend and week was over and it zipped through Peter's eyes. Although, the warm feeling never really went away. And it was for a good reason.

Peter yawned as he entered the school hallways, allowing students to pass him quickly while he walked tiredly to his locker, where Ned and MJ met him. Although he was tired, he was absolutely thrilled that it was Friday.

Today was the day that he would go to Mister Stark's home and actually work on projects with him. He couldn't wait to tell Ned and MJ. It wasn't frequent that students had a opportunity to work in a lab at a young age, and seeing as he was only 15 years old, he wasn't about to take away that privilege.

His lips gracefully quirked up at the memory of Mister Stark hugging him and how the man basically took him under his wing. It felt like just yesterday that school had started and accidentally bumping into him. Shaking out of his thoughts, he saw Ned sitting on the floor with a Lego set while MJ was leaning her shoulder against an unused locker while reading an open book.

Ned looked up to see his best friend walk towards the locker with his nerdy glasses and curly hairs bouncing every time he stepped.

"Hey!" Ned greeted excitingly, waving him over. Peter snapped from his tired phase and rushed over to Ned and MJ with a grin.

"Hey guys," he greeted back. He opened his locker and started shoving books and a brown paper bag that resembled of a lunch bag into the small space. When he closed his locker and hauled his backpack on one shoulder, Ned was right in front of him with eyes shining.

"Dude! Give me the details! How was dinner with Mister Stark?!"

MJ looked up from her book and raised an eyebrow, indicating that she was listening. With a wide smile, Peter started explaining. Their home and decor, his Fiancee and how lovely and beautiful she was, the lab and the Italian dinner.

"Omigosh!" Ned fanned. "A lab?! That's so freaking cool! You're so lucky!"

"The Lasagna sounds really good," MJ murmured as she turned a page and kept her eyes on the page. Peter rolled his eyes but smiled anyways. He knew that MJ was interested in the lab, but to be fair, the food was really good.

"Yeah, it  _really_ was," Peter confirmed, laughing a bit.

They were silent for a moment, their eyes casting towards each other before Peter decided to speak.

"Can you believe school is almost over? Like 2 more months and we'll be free?" His voice was laced with astonishment and somewhat melancholy. It wasn't like he hated school, mostly the bullies and the cafeteria food was his least favorite part, but most of his teachers have been very kind to him. Except for Wilson. He can fall in the ditch filled with Lions.

Plus, Flash hasn't bothered him or his friends very much.

"Its weird to think that we'll be in 10th grade," Ned mumbled, scuffing his feet against the dirty white tiles.

Peter shrugged. "A year older, I suppose, but hey, maybe Flash will go to boarding school far across America," he joked.

"That'd take a Godsend," MJ sighed.

Ned opened his mouth to speak, but the red bell chimed loudly, echoing in the hallways and annoying the students. The rounded-boy groaned out loud. "That's my funeral, I'll see you two later," he said.

Peter waved goodbye and followed after MJ who was already ahead of going to class.

When they walked in, they saw Mister Stark writing something on the pristine whiteboard with a red marker. Some students were already filed in and sitting in their appropriate seating, waiting for the period to start.

"Hi, Mister Stark," Peter chirped from the door.

Tony looked away from the whiteboard and smiled warmly at the two. "Good morning to you as well," he responded back. Inclining his head, his eyes went back to the whiteboard as the two students walked to their desks and sat down. Peter glanced at the whiteboard and cocked his head in confusion.

There wasn't any math problems, but labeled parts of a computer. He looked around to see if he was in the right class or if Mister Stark was the one to be in the mistaken class. But after seeing familiar students in their assigned desks, he couldn't help but shake the question off.

He turned his head towards the whiteboard again and looked intently at it. Most of the computer parts he knew by heart and others he has never learned before.

"Why do I have a nagging feeling that this is going to be total different subject than math?" A feminine voice from behind questioned, her voice a bit exasperated. Peter turned his body and faced MJ with a shrug. "Computers have math in them, I guess."

MJ rolled her eyes and looked at the board. She shook her head and let out a breath she's been holding. "I'll take your word for it..."

Peter smiled at the girl in sympathy. He knew that Michelle wasn't very techy like him and Ned, but more on the line of learning to get school and other stuff done on the computer.

When the bell rang again, the students went silent and they looked at their teacher expectantly.

Putting down his marker, Mister Stark spun on his heel and gave his class a wide smile. "Good morning class!" He said out loud in a enthusiastic tone. The class, however, gave a mumble back of a 'good morning.'

"Damn, when did I get a class full of zombies, hmm?" Mister Stark joked. Peter noticed that Mister Stark was much more chippier and cheerful than other days, and he couldn't help but feel like this was going to be a very good day.

Some students chuckled at the joke, and others raised their eyebrow and rolled their eyes.

One student raised their hand. A girl with black hair and round glasses. Honestly, she looked like a female version of Harry Potter. "And how many coffees did you have this time, sir?"

"To much, my dear," he answered with a gentle smile. He clapped his hands and he looked attentive now. "Alright, back to the subject," he announced. He pointed at the whiteboard with labels of computer parts.

"Today, we'll be learning about coding,  _but_ I know many of you do not know the world of computers. So today we'll be learning about the labels of computer parts and what they do," Mister Stark explained.

The teacher smiled broadly when the eyes of the nerd group light up with excitement.

"What does coding have to do with math?" A student asked.

"A fair question, my dear student," Mister Stark said. He kept standing but his eyes were all on his young pupils. "As you can see, Math is all around us. We need it for figuring out how to measure and build. Doctors need math, constructor workers, chefs and computer technicians as well. Coding is something you will learn in later grades, which is why I decided to teach you the basics before you come across it." A smile graced upon his lips as he continued. "And seeing as we're tired of seeing a textbook in front of our faces all the time, I decided to switch things up. School doesn't cover the necessities that the real life needs. And learning computers is one of them."

"It will help us?" Another student asked.

The man nodded. "You guys are the generation where you'll be living with technology. Like your parents, they never had advanced tech like we do now. Everyone uses it now and it is now an essential part we need. So, it'll be a good learning experience later in life."

"This is going to be so cool!" A student gushed, earning for Mister Stark to grin.

Not a moment later, someone with a trolly came in with 4 boxes toppled on each box. It had a logo that not many knew, but looked familiar. Didn't Mister Stark have a pin like that on his shirt before?

"Tony Stark?" The man asked, looking at his clipboard for confirmation.

"That'll be me," Tony said as he walked over to the man and he signed the papers that the deliverer gave him. Tony looked at Peter. "Hey kid, mind helping me with the boxes?"

Peter jolted but non the less got up and helped get the boxes. It was heavy and seemed like it held a rock or something. He saw Tony smile and cut the box open, revealing-

"What the..." Peter gasped. When the boy made that noise, the rest of the students looked more intrigued than ever.

There were questions of "What?" or "What is it?"

But Peter could stare in awe.

* * *

"Brand new computers!" Peter exclaimed to Ned as they sat down in their usual spot at the cafeteria with a tray of school food. "Brand new computers!" He repeated excitedly.

Ned was just as in awe as Peter was. "Seriously!? And he bought them with his own money?! Dude, that's so cool!"

Peter just nodded excitingly. "I know! He got each student a computer to work on! He's so freaking cool!"

"Just think, you'll be working in his lab today," Ned practically sang-song. Peter felt his cheeks burn, but smiled anyways. Maybe that was why Mister Stark was in a happy mood today. Or he drank to much coffee this morning.

"Do you losers ever stop talking about computers Or legos?" MJ asked in her monotone voice.

Peter and Ned gasped in mocked pain, a hand over their hearts.

"How could we not?" Ned asked, breathless.

MJ rolled her eyes at their dramatic expressions, but silently trying to remember their faces to draw later in her crisis book.

"You can't tell me you didn't enjoy that class, MJ," Peter said, accusation in his tone. MJ shrugged. Yeah, she did enjoyed and learned things that she didn't know about computers. "You got me there," she murmured.

Peter smiled triumphantly.

They continued with their usual conversation while MJ silently read and sometime would throw out a sarcastic comment that would make the atmosphere more funnier. When the bell rang, they all shuffled outside the cafeteria doors before before being stopped by a teacher.

"Mister Stark!" Peter squeaked. The teacher merely smiled and nodded at the trio. "Hey kiddos. Your Aunt texted me and asked me to take you to my house, so when school is done, come over to my classroom, alright? Alright! See you later, kid." Tony grinned and patted his shoulder before heading off, leaving Peter and his friends to stand there like fish out of water.

"That was the fastest teacher talk I have ever heard," Ned whispered. He then turned to Peter with a weak smile. "At least you won't have to worry about being run over at the subway."

A groan escaped from the teenager's mouth. "That was only one time!" He exasperated.

"More like 2..." MJ muttered to herself.

"I heard that!"

* * *

Gym had been exactly at what Peter had expected since the first week of school.

Absolute misery.

It was a hot day in Queens. The most hottest it has ever been since Spring. It was moving onto Summer, to which Peter was counting down the days when the longest break came. Humidity was always the problem in New York, not really the heat itself, but you couldn't help but complain about the heat as well.

And it was no help that Wilson had his whistle blowing right in his ears. He might as well sign up early for hearing aids. Peter jogged along the outlines of the football field, his ankles aching and chest feeling like someone placed weights on his chest.

His glasses slid down the bridge of his nose due to the sweat that had formed on his nose while the heat of the sun beat down on his form. He huffed, half annoyed that every time he had to push back up his glasses he would get smudges and half trying to catch his breath.

Mr. Wilson had been exceptionally grumpy today, announcing a timed mile test and doing planks. Flash has always been his bully. Elementary through High school, but Peter hated to think that a teacher was going to bully him.

He had tried to think that Mr. Wilson was just a teacher who was just strict on his students, but the teacher had been especially hard on him.

And sadly Ned, too.

Ned was way behind him, panting tiredly as he tried to catch up with Peter. Eventually, Ned had told told him to go on ahead of him, and though reluctant, he complied and ran past him with ease.

MJ, well, she was walking while reading a back, ignoring Wilson's loud whistle. But to no avail, the teenager girl didn't budge and continued to turn a page she read. The whistling and yelling stopped, obviously meaning that Wilson had accepted his defeat.

Time seemed to have pass slowly because Peter was positively exhausted when he reached his last lap. His legs felt like jello and the bouncy curls on his head seemed to have deflated and now cling onto Peter's sweaty forehead.

He could see Ned half running to fast walking at the same time while MJ read on with her book.

When he was half-way done with the lap, he managed to get a glimpse of another form walking towards Wilson's form. Squinting, Peter could see a shorter man with what looked like Mister Stark. Usually, the teacher wore T-shirt with jeans and sometimes a suit.

Today was one of those days when Mister Stark wore his suit for some reason.

Peter had questioned about it, but never actually asked about it.

The more closer he got to the end, the more he could see the teacher. And yes, it was Mister Stark. It looked like they were arguing over something and some students decided to back away and wait under some shade while the rest were still running.

When he finished, Peter collapsed on the cool grass and panted harshly, the light shining into his eyes. He groaned loudly and covered his eyes with his forearm. The smell of newly cut grass whiffed through his nose. It was neither comforting nor relaxing.

"Parker!" Wilson barked. "Get up and join the rest of the group!"

Peter groaned once more and sat up, rubbing his forehead and squinting slightly.

He blinked and saw Wilson and Mister Stark going at it again. Deciding to ignore that for now, he focused on getting up on his feet without wanting to barf all over the ground. Peter wasn't the only one to feel like they were going to throw up either.

Several students who were under the shade had their hands supporting the back of their heads, walking around while their eyes were closed, as if that would help the nausea. Other ones was sitting down with their knees tucked up to their chest as their head was between their hugged knees.

For some reason, it felt like he was in an oven. Even when he went into the shade and slid down against the hot concrete wall, which he just realized was a snack bar for Football games.

He licked his lips and regretted that he didn't get any water. Usually there was a water fountain to drink from, but since they were on the football field, there wasn't much to do except pray for this period to end.

What degrees is it outside now?

Peter closed his eyes and let a small sigh. Maybe a few minutes of his eyes closed will do him good...

Just...a few minutes.

* * *

"Parker!" A shout that entered the tired boy's ears and Peter jolted awake. His glasses fell from the bridge of his nose and he blinked before gaining focus. Pushing up his glasses, he saw Wilson, fuming and stomping over to him. Students from beside him slowly scooted away from him.

Oh crap.

"What do you think this is?!" Wilson yelled, waving a rectangular object all around in the air. "Do you think this is daycare?!"

"Sorry, sir," Peter apologized, shrinking his form while looking at his pissed off Gym teacher. There were days where an unfortunate victim was under Wilson's rage and sadly today was his turn.

"5 more laps," Wilson growled. His eyes scanned the students that were looking at him with widened eyes. "And those who are sitting as well! 5 more laps. No student of mine will sit their butts off!"

Almost three-fourths of the students who were finished and under the shade was sitting or leaning against the wall. Their eyes were wide like saucer pans and everyone was hesitant. They just finished the mile walk, as well as the planking and now they're doing more?!

"But-"

A student tried, but that even made Wilson even more pissed.

"Do I need to add more?" His voice thin and icy. Not one peep came from the class. No one dared to speak. Peter turned slightly to see Ned sitting down with a tired and pained expression. His best friend had a darker tone, but even he could tell that Ned was redder than a cherry.

When Peter turned his head fully, he peered at MJ, who was just as mad as Wilson. Then, he realized something.

Her book. Peter gasped quietly and quickly turned his head towards the P.E teacher, and his grasped hand, was MJ's book. His mouth fell open with astonishment. No freaking way.

Wilson had actually taken her book. No one has ever taken a book from MJ. The girl was dangerous when it came to taking one of MJ's stuff. And if looks could kill, MJ would have probably killed the teacher.

But, deep inside her eyes, there was defeat.

Peter felt guilt overflow his body. Everyone was suffering because he fell asleep...and now they can't escape it.

"Woah, 5 more laps?" A familiar voice interrupted. It was  _that_ voice that held justice and kindness. Wilson jerked his head towards the other voice and saw the teacher standing behind him with his arms crossed to his chest, mouth frowning.

"That's almost a mile. They've already proven that already."

To say that Tony wasn't mad. He was  _livid_. This morning and evening have gone off at such a good start. Tony was getting ready to intern Peter and and he introduced his students to the new world of computers. Their excited expressions is what Tony absolutely loved.

Their curiosity to learn new tech. And now, here they were, some of students feeling miserable and tired. No doubt parch, considering that he had noticed that no one had water bottles with them.

And no water fountain was to be found. Heck, not even a water hose.

Not to mention that it was the hottest day New York City has had since last year.

Wilson's lips turned into a scowl, but after a moment, his lips slowly tugged up into a smug smile. A smile that sent shivers down the student's spines. "Well," Wilson started, sighing a bit innocently. "Technically, 6 laps is equivalent to a mile for a football field..."

"Don't even think about it," Tony growled, arms at his side while his hands were clenched into fists.

"6 laps! You can thank your dear Math teacher," Wilson said smugly.

"Heat strokes are a thing!" Tony argued. "You're endangering students."

Wilson merely shrugged. "I call this survival." The whistle shrieked and everyone jumped up and grudgingly ran again. Some were slower and others were faster, but they all one thing on their mind.

Finish the laps.

* * *

Almost all of the class' faces were beet red. Their hair were disheveled with sweat and no one was able to stand up after that rude-awakening extra mile. Peter heaved a gasp as he fell on the dirt and let the grass brush away his sweat.

His dry lips and throat yearned for water. No doubt, everyone else was wishing it.

It must've been after school, because some cars were parked in front of the school building, waiting parents looking for their child. So detention...

Great...

Peter couldn't even groan without having his throat hurt. If he could recall from a science lesson, that over-doing exercise when your body wasn't used to it could cause serious damage inside and outside.

Peter was honestly surprised that no one has vomited yet.

A retching sound was heard from afar.

Nevermind.

Ned was lying on the ground, his chest heaving up and down. MJ sat down with her book clutched in her hands while she sent glares towards Wilson, even though the teacher ignored them.

Mister Stark was no where to be seen.

In all honesty, Peter could sleep right on the ground.

Too bad Wilson blew his whistle again, prompting him to snap his eyes open.

"Not bad, students. But I expect better. Get going, I don't have all day," Wilson all but growled out.

Peter sluggishly sat up and brushed away the grass that clung onto legs and arms. He winced when he fully stood and walked slowly down the football field.

His mind was buzzing with nothing but exhaustion, and he was looking forward to sleeping in his bed. His mind pushed away the comfort of his bed and focused on getting his backpack and getting the heck outta here.

But, when he entered the gym, he saw Mister Stark standing there, a broad smile on his face with multi-colored coolers surrounded him. Students who went ahead of him or passed him because he was so slow was drinking enthusiastically gulping down what looked like refreshments or sucking on a ice pop.

Peter's mouth watered and Mister Stark must have noticed, because the man gently grabbed a hold of his shoulder and steered him to multiple opened coolers. Mister Stark bent down and grabbed a blue Gatorade and a red ice pop and plopped them into his hands.

He didn't waste any time to open the cap of the Gatorade and gulped down, stopping half way and taking a breath. The cold and soothing liquid went down his scratchy throat, relieving the dryness.

Peter looked at the red ice pop and tore it open before sucking the cold ice. He moaned in satisfaction and looked at Mister Stark with crinkled eyes, nodding in thanks.

Tony smiled and patted his shoulder. "You deserve it, kid. Sorry I got you another lap," he said sincerely. Tony looked over to the students chatting away and giving ice pops to the new-comers, feeling thankful that most of his students were returning to their normal color.

Peter let go of the plastic tip and opened his mouth, but Tony butted in and smiled warmly at him. "Go enjoy your ice pop and there's more if you want some, alright? I need to get a kid to the nurses office and get them some medicine. Once we're done with all this, I'll take you home, yeah?"

When he turned around to walk off, after catching a glimpse of a surprised look from the boy, a hand grabbed the hem of his shirt, like a little child would. His brown eyes averted to Peter, who bit his lip.

"I thought you were going to take me to your lab and help me with some school?" He had asked in such a tiny voice. Suddenly, it just felt like the kid was smaller, so much smaller than a teenager.

What he saw a lost child, looking for something that will help. That will give him a second chance.

He noticed that Peter was just as vulnerable as any hurt child would be. Expectant of the hurt, but still hurt. It tore through Tony's heart as he watched Peter's eyes glimmer.

"I just thought you would be tired," Tony soothed. "after all this, you must be tired."

But, Peter shook his head and looked at him with hopeful eyes. "I still need your help."

Tony blinked, but nodded. The boy had let go of the hem of his shirt, but he felt like he was being pulled closer to the child. And just like that, Tony pulled the kid into an embrace. He felt the kid tense, but slowly relax. Thin arms wrapped around his waist and squeezed.

"Don't worry, kid. I'm always here to help," he whispered into Peter's ear.

Peter's head merely nodded into his shoulder and that was the reassurance the kid needed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh, so I'm not dead?
> 
> I'm really sorry, but writer's block has been a kick in the butt. The chapter is pretty weak and not my best and i'm really, really sorry. Review and let me know what you think(Also if you could point out any mistakes). Thank you for being patient and i'll see you soon. :)


End file.
